Apparatus and methods for providing wireless service in a venue

ABSTRACT

Apparatus and methods for monitoring a wireless network such as a WLAN to characterize a venue or other area. In one embodiment, the network comprises a WLAN which includes one or more access points (APs) in data communication with a controller, which in turn communicates with managed network entities via a backhaul connection. The controller s is configured to monitor the operation of the network components including the APs, as well as one or more fixed or mobile sensors. In one variant, the sensors provide data relating to wireless signal performance at their current location, which can be provided to a cloud-based evaluation process for enhanced characterization of the venue in conjunction with the AP-derived data. In the exemplary embodiment, logic operative to run on the system includes automated seating allocation suggestions, thereby providing end users with a better quality experience.

PRIORITY

This application is a continuation of and claims priority to co-ownedand co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/612,630 of the sametitle filed Jun. 2, 2017, and issuing as U.S. Pat. No. 10,645,547 on May5, 2020, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

COPYRIGHT

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains materialthat is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has noobjection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent documentor the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and TrademarkOffice patent files or records, but otherwise reserves all copyrightrights whatsoever.

BACKGROUND 1. Technological Field

The present disclosure relates generally to the field of wirelessnetworks, and specifically in one or more exemplary embodiments toapparatus and methods for monitoring radio frequency (RF) conditions ina venue and determining wireless coverage as a function of locationand/or time within the venue via, inter alia, utilization of anassociated managed content provider network.

2. Description of Related Technology

In many public and private locations/venues, such as e.g., sportsarenas, conference or convention centers, hotels, concert halls,airports, etc., wireless networks are provided for connection ofend-user devices (e.g., mobile and/or personal computing devices such assmartphones, tablets, laptops, etc.) to data delivery networks,including unmanaged networks such as the Internet. One technology thatenables a user to engage in such wireless communication is Wi-Fi® (IEEEStd. 802.11), which has become the de facto standard for wirelessnetworking in consumer electronics. Wi-Fi enables convenient access tonetworks (e.g., the Internet, intranets, other interconnected devices)via at least one access point (“AP,” also colloquially referred to as“hotspots”) to client devices within the AP's coverage area.

Typical wireless APs have an effective connectivity range on the orderof one hundred (100) feet, depending on factors such as the presence orabsence of buildings or other structures (and their materials ofconstruction), and other interfering emitters. The optimal location ofthe wireless interface (e.g., an access point (AP), wireless accesspoint (WAP), router, etc.) is sometimes a three-dimensional spatialproblem, as client devices that will communicate with the wirelessinterface may be located on the same floor of a building or structure(in any azimuth direction), and also on different floors above and belowthe wireless interface's position. In addition, at any of the locationswhere a client device is located, other local factors affecting thedevice's ability to communicate with the wireless interface may alsoexist, such as radio frequency (RF) signal path loss/attenuation (suchas due to interposed materials, instruments, etc.), ionosphere signalreflections and refractions (e.g., atmospheric ducting), and fading(which degrades the radio signals due to rapid fluctuations of theamplitudes, phases, or multipath delays of a radio signal over a shortperiod or short travel distance due to interfering environment).Moreover, interference from other RF or electromagnetic sources such asother wireless-enabled devices in the same frequency band,non-communicate on interference sources (e.g., microwave ovens), solarradiation, and so forth can further attenuate or disrupt WLAN andsimilar signals.

Additionally, the characteristics of a wireless interface such as an AP(as well as the corresponding client devices) are such that they mayhave directional RF properties due to, e.g., variances in antenna gainin different directions, obstruction by internal components of thedevice, etc.

In the exemplary context of a concert venue (e.g., music hall or thelike), the construction of the venue including the stage, electrical orelectronic musical instruments or equipment on the stage or proximatethereto, and other RF or electromagnetic sources in the audience or onstage have an effect on the spatial distribution of RF signals aroundthe stage (and the venue generally). For example, the construction ofthe stage involves the use of different materials such as concrete,brick, dry-wall, wood, glass, metal framing, etc., that each may havedifferent attenuation properties at exemplary radio frequencies used inwireless systems (e.g., 2.4 GHz, 3.6 GHz and 5 GHz). Also, signals atthese frequencies create multi-path propagation throughout the venue,especially with other factors of interference and at increasingdistances from the wireless interface, and can be quite unpredictable.Thus, all the locations within the venue (including those where userwireless devices may be used) are individually different in terms of thepropagation path to and from the wireless interface, and hence signalstrength at that location.

Currently, seating allocations and ticket prices within venues do nottake into account wireless coverage; while some venues may have “cellfree” zones or the like (i.e., areas where one can or cannot use theirwireless device), such considerations are based on other factors, suchas not disturbing others within the venue. Even in venues where there isno assigned seating (such as for example a convention center), there isno consideration of particular locations within the venue and thevariations in RF signal performance as a function thereof. Typically, inthe case of Wi-Fi, the venue event organizer will place several APsthroughout various locations in the venue, such that at least a majorityof two-dimensional area within the venue (i.e., floor space) is coveredby at least one AP, but no spatial “heat mapping” for RF signals isconducted, nor is any differentiation between locations with better orworse coverage made.

Additionally, even when the placement of wireless interface(s) such asWLAN APs within a venue is optimized for the particular attributes ofthat venue (e.g., based on construction materials of the building,particular shapes and placement of the building components, etc.), theconnectivity and multi-path propagation throughout the venue will beaffected by the interfering emitters that are introduced during theperformance or event (e.g., by the introduction of an audience or otherparticipants with their own potentially interfering devices), and/orduring the pre-staging phase of the performance/event (e.g., instrumentset-up, sound checks, etc.). Even at open-seating type events such asauto or trade shows, any modeling or planning the venue operator mightperform prior to the event itself may be somewhat obsolete at the timeof the event, due to the introduction of vehicles, personal electronicdevices, demonstration devices, etc., and in some cases variation of thepresence, location, and/or operation of these items over the course ofthe event duration.

Hence, a customer/audience member/participant is typically unable todetermine the wireless coverage they will receive during an event whensigning up, selecting a seating location, and/or purchasing a ticket fora performance or event. For example, a user may purchase a comparativelyexpensive ticket to be closer to the performers on the stage, only torealize they have limited or no wireless connectivity, and thereforecannot post images or videos of the performance to social media, etc.Similarly, a vendor may select a booth location at a trade show with theexpectation that they will have sufficient wireless bandwidth to conducttheir demonstrations, only to find out during the event that thebandwidth is insufficient. This effect may also exist for vehicles at anauto show, which are now increasingly incorporating indigenous WLANcapability (some which are capable of accessing a local non-vehicleprovided hotspot); poor WLAN connectivity and performance can makedemonstrating the attributes of the vehicle's telematics system (e.g.,rapid access to Internet data while in the vehicle) difficult at best.

Moreover, the characteristics of a given venue may significantly changeas a function of the type of event hosted in the venue. As alluded toabove, equipment and material placement within the venue maysignificantly alter the RF propagation characteristics for variousfrequency bands, such that during one type of event (e.g., a trade showwith no assigned seating and comparatively static displays) the RFperformance in the desired bands is sufficient at a given location,whereas that same location may have unacceptable performance underduring another type of event (e.g., concert with removable seating,stage, etc. added inside the venue, and a higher per-areas user density(and hence user personal wireless device density).

Accordingly, the foregoing issues result in a frustrating experience forthe end user, whose concern is to maintain connectivity to the wirelessnetwork and backhaul, especially when such user has no visibility intotemporal or spatial variations in the quality of their network service.

To these ends, improved solutions are needed for more precise andanticipatory mechanisms to identify and characterize available seatingor other local areas having certain prescribed levels of wirelessperformance within the venue of interest, and notification of end usersthereof. Specifically, what are needed are methods and apparatus tomonitor RF conditions associated with wireless networks, and utilizevarious information (including RF condition information, as well ashistorical data relating to similar events) to determine spatialcharacterizations of the venue, such as for seating or other placementallocations).

SUMMARY

The present disclosure addresses the foregoing needs by providing, interalia, methods and apparatus for monitoring a wireless network, andproviding information relating to wireless connectivity as a function ofspatial and/or temporal variations in the wireless signal environment.

In one aspect of the present disclosure, a method of notifying at leastone client device of one or more locations with a desired wirelessperformance characteristic is provided. In one embodiment, the methodincludes: receiving information relating to the wireless performancecharacteristic; processing at least a portion of the receivedinformation relative to one or more locations; and notifying one or moreentities of the processed at least the portion of the information.

In one variant, the processing comprises generating one or more“heat-maps”, and the information includes data related to RF conditionsassociated with the one or more particular spatial locations within anenclosed or at least partly enclosed venue.

In another aspect, an apparatus for use within a content deliverynetwork is provided. In one embodiment, the apparatus includes: aprocessor apparatus in data communication with one or more networkinterfaces; and a non-transitory computer-readable storage apparatus indata communication with the processor apparatus and comprising one ormore computer programs, the one or more computer programs comprising aplurality of instructions. In one variant, the instructions areconfigured to, when executed on the processor apparatus: receive atleast data associated with one or more locations within a venue; use theat least the data to generate one or more data structures; and transmitthe one or more data structures via the one or more network interfaces.In one implementation, the one or more locations is/are associated to atleast one sensor within a range of connectivity of one or more wirelessaccess points.

In another aspect, a system for use within a wireless content deliverynetwork is provided. In one embodiment, the system comprises anetwork-based controller in operative communication with one or morewireless access points (e.g., Wi-Fi APs) disposed at various locationsassociated with a venue.

In a further aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable apparatus isdisclosed. In one embodiment, the apparatus includes a storage mediumhaving at least one computer program disposed thereon, the at least onecomputer program configured to, when executed on a computerizedprocessing apparatus, provide one or more proximate client devices withinformation relating to one or more locations and wireless networkconnectivity associated therewith.

In another embodiment, the at least one computer program is configuredto, when executed, cause a mobile wireless user device to: issue amessage to request data relating to wireless LAN (WLAN) interfaceperformance at one or more locations within the venue, the requestissued to a networked server device; provide location-related data tothe networked server device, the location-related data relating to acurrent location of the mobile device; receive, from the networkedserver device, the data relating to wireless LAN (WLAN) interfaceperformance at one or more locations within the venue; and receive, fromthe networked server device, data indicating the availability for use ofat least one of the one or more locations.

In one variant, the issuance of the message comprises a messagecomprising an API call sent via a wireless interface of the mobiledevice, such as a wireless interface of the mobile device other than aWLAN interface of the mobile device.

In another variant, the at least one computer program is furtherconfigured to, when executed: receive a message issued from a WLANaccess point (AP) within the venue, the received message configured tocause a WLAN interface of the mobile device to invoke a prescribedaction, the prescribed action enabling the networked server device tofurther evaluate wireless LAN (WLAN) interface performance within thevenue. In one implementation, the prescribed action comprises: sensingone or more RF parameters using the WLAN interface of the mobile device;and transmitting data relating to the sensed one or more RF parametersto the WLAN AP.

In a further variant, the at least one computer program is rendered asan application program (“app”) downloadable to a user mobile device andcompatible with the operating system thereof; the app enables the mobiledevice to extract information from one or more data structures for use(e.g., display, storage, etc.). The app may include, inter alia, avirtual wallet wherein virtual coupons, rewards, points, currency, etc.can be stored and later negotiated with e.g., merchants, such as forgoods or services (e.g., upgrades to seating with better wirelessconnectivity).

In a further aspect an application programming interface (API) usefulwith a mobile wireless device is disclosed. In one embodiment, the APIcomprises an interface accessible via a network address such as a URLand that can be called by e.g., an app on the aforementioned mobiledevice in order to obtain seating location data for one or morelocations that enhance or improve performance for the user's mobiledevice WLAN interface.

In yet a further aspect, a wireless-enabled client device is disclosed.In one embodiment, the client device comprises a Wi-Fi-enabledsmartphone or tablet or laptop computer with an application programoperative to run thereon.

In another aspect, a method of optimizing user wireless “experience”within a venue is disclosed. In a further aspect, a method ofcharacterizing a venue on a per-event or per-event category basis isdisclosed.

In a further aspect, a method and apparatus for pre-calculation anddetermination of the energy losses (in dB or dBm) due to interference isdisclosed.

In a further aspect, a method of dynamically and automatically providingvenue location assignments to a user within the venue using acomputerized system is disclosed. In one embodiment, the methodincludes: obtaining at the computerized system a request for evaluationfrom a mobile device of the user, the mobile device located at a firstlocation within the venue; based at least on the received request,obtaining first data relating to radio frequency (RF) signal performancewithin the venue under a current configuration of the venue; based atleast one the first data, generating a spatial model of the venue, thespatial model identifying variations in the RF performance as a functionof at least two dimensions; based at least on the spatial model,identifying at least one second location of the venue with a predictedlevel of RF performance greater than that of the first location; andnotifying, via the computerized system, the mobile device of the secondlocation.

In one variant, the obtaining first data relating to radio frequency(RF) signal performance within the venue under a current configurationof the venue comprises utilizing at least a plurality of wireless accesspoints disposed at prescribed locations within the venue to report, inreal time, data relating to at least one RF performance parameter, andthe identifying at least one second location of the venue with apredicted level of RF performance greater than that of the firstlocation based at least on the spatial model, comprises correlating atleast the prescribed locations to locations of seating within the venue.

In a further aspect, network apparatus configured to enable dynamicuser-specific location allocation to obtain a desired level of WLANperformance is disclosed. In one embodiment, the network apparatusincludes: computerized controller apparatus configured to controloperation of a plurality of WLAN access points (APs) operative within avenue so as to obtain location-specific WLAN operating data from theplurality of APs; and computerized processing apparatus in datacommunication with the computerized controller apparatus and configuredto: obtain the location-specific WLAN operating data; correlate thelocation-specific WLAN operating data to prescribed locations within thevenue; estimate WLAN performance at other locations within the venuebased at least on the location-specific WLAN operating data and thecorrelation; evaluate the estimated WLAN performance associated with atleast one of the other locations against a current location of a usermobile device; and based at least on the evaluation, cause transmissionof data to the user mobile device relating to the estimated WLANperformance associated with the at least one other location. In onevariant, the controller apparatus is further configured to controloperation of a plurality of radio frequency sensors operative within thevenue so as to obtain location-specific RF parametric data from theplurality of sensors; and the computerized processing apparatus isfurther configured to utilize the location specific RF parametric dataas part of the estimation of WLAN performance.

In a further aspect, a method of characterizing the radio frequency (RF)environment of a venue as a function of an event within the venue isdisclosed. In one embodiment, the method includes: obtaining first datarelating to radio frequency (RF) signal propagation within the venueunder a first configuration of the venue; altering the configuration ofat least a portion of the venue, the alteration degrading the RF signalpropagation in at least one aspect; obtaining second data relating toradio frequency (RF) signal propagation within the venue under thealtered configuration; analyzing the first data and the second data toidentify one or more effects of the altered configuration as a functionof location within the venue; generating data describing the identifiedone or more effects as a function of location within the venue; andutilizing the generated data at another venue to predict effects on RFsignal propagation under an altered configuration of the another venue.These and other aspects shall become apparent when considered in lightof the disclosure provided herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram illustrating an exemplary hybridfiber network configuration useful with various aspects of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 1a is a functional block diagram illustrating one exemplary networkheadend configuration useful with various aspects of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 1b is a functional block diagram illustrating one exemplary localservice node configuration useful with various aspects of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 1c is a functional block diagram illustrating one exemplarybroadcast switched architecture (BSA) network useful with variousaspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1d is a functional block diagram illustrating one exemplarypacketized content delivery network architecture useful with variousaspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of an exemplary embodiment of awireless network infrastructure useful with various embodiments of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 2a is a functional block diagram of an exemplary embodiment of theinfrastructure of FIG. 2, in the context of cable network architectureproviding WLAN services within a venue.

FIG. 2b is a logical block diagram showing logic-level communicationsbetween end user, service provider, and event provider domains accordingto one embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 2c is a logical block diagram showing logic-level communicationsbetween end user, service provider, venue operator, and event providerdomains according to another embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a logical flow diagram of an exemplary method for a controllerto monitor a wireless network and notify one or more client devicesregarding location data.

FIG. 3a is a logical flow diagram of another embodiment of the methodfor a controller to monitor a wireless network and notify one or moreclient devices regarding location data.

FIG. 3b is a graphical representation of exemplary signal flow betweenentities of the network of FIG. 2, according to the method of FIG. 3.

FIG. 4 is a logical flow diagram of an exemplary method for monitoring awireless network, and utilizing profile data for one or more past eventsto provide location allocations, according to the present disclosure.

FIG. 4a is a graphical representation of exemplary signal flow betweenentities of the network of FIG. 2, according to the method of FIG. 4.

FIG. 4b is a logical flow diagram of an exemplary method forcharacterizing the wireless performance of a venue as a function ofconfiguration changes thereto (e.g., in preparation for an event),according to the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a graphical representation of exemplary seatingorganization/classification schemes consistent with the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram of an exemplary embodiment of aclient device apparatus according to the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a functional block diagram of an exemplary embodiment of acontroller apparatus according to the present disclosure.

All figures © Copyright 2017 Time Warner Cable Enterprises, LLC. Allrights reserved.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference is now made to the drawings wherein like numerals refer tolike parts throughout.

As used herein, the term “access point” refers generally and withoutlimitation to a network node which enables communication between a useror client device and another entity within a network, such as forexample a Wi-Fi AP, or a Wi-Fi-Direct enabled client or other device,and which may be acting as a Group Owner (GO).

As used herein, the term “application” refers generally and withoutlimitation to a unit of executable software that implements a certainfunctionality or theme. The themes of applications vary broadly acrossany number of disciplines and functions (such as on-demand contentmanagement, e-commerce transactions, brokerage transactions, homeentertainment, calculator etc.), and one application may have more thanone theme. The unit of executable software generally runs in apredetermined environment; for example, the unit could include adownloadable Java Xlet™ that runs within the JavaTV™ environment.

As used herein, the term “client device” includes, but is not limitedto, set-top boxes (e.g., DSTBs), gateways, modems, personal computers(PCs), and minicomputers, whether desktop, laptop, or otherwise, andmobile devices such as handheld computers, PDAs, personal media devices(PMDs), tablets, “phablets”, smartphones, and vehicle infotainment orsimilar systems.

As used herein, the term “codec” refers to a video, audio, or other datacoding and/or decoding algorithm, process or apparatus including,without limitation, those of the MPEG (e.g., MPEG-1, MPEG-2,MPEG-4/H.264, H.265, etc.), Real (RealVideo, etc.), AC-3 (audio), DiVX,XViD/ViDX, Windows Media Video (e.g., WMV 7, 8, 9, 10, or 11), ATI Videocodec, or VC-1 (SMPTE standard 421M) families.

As used herein, the term “computer program” or “software” is meant toinclude any sequence or human or machine cognizable steps which performa function. Such program may be rendered in virtually any programminglanguage or environment including, for example, C/C++, Fortran, COBOL,PASCAL, assembly language, markup languages (e.g., HTML, SGML, XML,VoXML), and the like, as well as object-oriented environments such asthe Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA), Java™ (includingJ2ME, Java Beans, etc.) and the like.

As used herein, the term “DOCSIS” refers to any of the existing orplanned variants of the Data Over Cable Services InterfaceSpecification, including for example DOCSIS versions 1.0, 1.1, 2.0, 3.0and 3.1.

As used herein, the term “headend” or “backend” refers generally to anetworked system controlled by an operator (e.g., an MSO) thatdistributes programming to MSO clientele using client devices. Suchprogramming may include literally any information source/receiverincluding, inter alia, free-to-air TV channels, pay TV channels,interactive TV, over-the-top services, streaming services, and theInternet.

As used herein, the terms “Internet” and “internet” are usedinterchangeably to refer to inter-networks including, withoutlimitation, the Internet. Other common examples include but are notlimited to: a network of external servers, “cloud” entities (such asmemory or storage not local to a device, storage generally accessible atany time via a network connection, and the like), service nodes, accesspoints, controller devices, client devices, etc.

As used herein, the term “memory” includes any type of integratedcircuit or other storage device adapted for storing digital dataincluding, without limitation, ROM, PROM, EEPROM, DRAM, SDRAM, DDR/2SDRAM, EDO/FPMS, RLDRAM, SRAM, “flash” memory (e.g., NAND/NOR), 3Dmemory, and PSRAM.

As used herein, the terms “microprocessor” and “processor” or “digitalprocessor” are meant generally to include all types of digitalprocessing devices including, without limitation, digital signalprocessors (DSPs), reduced instruction set computers (RISC),general-purpose (CISC) processors, microprocessors, gate arrays (e.g.,FPGAs), PLDs, reconfigurable computer fabrics (RCFs), array processors,secure microprocessors, and application-specific integrated circuits(ASICs). Such digital processors may be contained on a single unitary ICdie, or distributed across multiple components.

As used herein, the terms “MSO” or “multiple systems operator” refer toa cable, satellite, or terrestrial network provider havinginfrastructure required to deliver services including programming anddata over those mediums.

As used herein, the terms “network” and “bearer network” refer generallyto any type of telecommunications or data network including, withoutlimitation, hybrid fiber coax (HFC) networks, satellite networks, telconetworks, and data networks (including MANs, WANs, LANs, WLANs,internets, and intranets). Such networks or portions thereof may utilizeany one or more different topologies (e.g., ring, bus, star, loop,etc.), transmission media (e.g., wired/RF cable, RF wireless, millimeterwave, optical, etc.) and/or communications or networking protocols(e.g., SONET, DOCSIS, IEEE Std. 802.3, ATM, X.25, Frame Relay, 3GPP,3GPP2, WAP, SIP, UDP, FTP, RTP/RTCP, H.323, etc.).

As used herein, the term “network interface” refers to any signal ordata interface with a component or network including, withoutlimitation, those of the FireWire (e.g., FW400, FW800, etc.), USB (e.g.,USB 2.0, 3.0. OTG), Ethernet (e.g., 10/100, 10/100/1000 (GigabitEthernet), 10-Gig-E, etc.), MoCA, Coaxsys (e.g., TVnet™), radiofrequency tuner (e.g., in-band or OOB, cable modem, etc.), LTE/LTE-A,Wi-Fi (802.11), WiMAX (802.16), Z-wave, PAN (e.g., 802.15), or powerline carrier (PLC) families.

As used herein, the term “QAM” refers to modulation schemes used forsending signals over e.g., cable or other networks. Such modulationscheme might use any constellation level (e.g. QPSK, 16-QAM, 64-QAM,256-QAM, etc.) depending on details of a network. A QAM may also referto a physical channel modulated according to the schemes.

As used herein the terms “reboot” and “re-initialization” include,without limitation, both “soft” reboots (i.e., those targeted atreinitializing one or more host device software/firmware processeswithout electrical power-down), and “hard” reboots (i.e., those whichmay interrupt power to the host as a whole, or particular componentsthereof). In some cases, hard reboots are further characterized in thatthey require a manual intervention or trigger (e.g., a user has tophysically depress a button, etc.)

As used herein, the term “server” refers to any computerized component,system or entity regardless of form which is adapted to provide data,files, applications, content, or other services to one or more otherdevices or entities on a computer network.

As used herein, the term “storage” refers to without limitation computerhard drives, DVR device, memory, RAID devices or arrays, optical media(e.g., CD-ROMs, Laserdiscs, Blu-Ray, etc.), or any other devices ormedia capable of storing content or other information.

As used herein, the term “Wi-Fi” refers to, without limitation and asapplicable, any of the variants of IEEE-Std. 802.11 or related standardsincluding 802.11 a/b/g/n/s/v/ac or 802.11-2012/2013, as well as Wi-FiDirect (including inter alia, the “Wi-Fi Peer-to-Peer (P2P)Specification”, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety).

As used herein, the term “wireless” means any wireless signal, data,communication, or other interface including without limitation Wi-Fi,Bluetooth, 3G (3GPP/3GPP2), HSDPA/HSUPA, TDMA, CDMA (e.g., IS-95A,WCDMA, etc.), FHSS, DSSS, GSM, PAN/802.15, WiMAX (802.16), 802.20,Zigbee®, Z-wave, narrowband/FDMA, OFDM, PCS/DCS, LTE/LTE-A, analogcellular, CDPD, satellite systems, millimeter wave or microwave systems,acoustic, and infrared (i.e., IrDA).

Overview

As noted above, a typical wireless local area network (WLAN) isconfigured to provide network connectivity (e.g., to the Internet) via aservice provider network, so as to deliver data and provide access tonetwork services to nearby client devices (smartphone, laptop, desktop,tablet, etc.) via one or more wireless access points (APs). The data maytravel through multiple network entities, such as a cable modem (CM) orsatellite modem, intermediary entities (e.g., data center, backhaulinfrastructure), AP controller, cable modem termination system (CMTS),and other backend apparatus.

An end user utilizing the wireless network may experience degradation orloss of service via the network, including chronically low data rates,for various reasons relating to propagation losses or interference suchas from venue construction and placement of structures therein, thepresence of musical instruments or an audience, and other interferers.

The present disclosure accordingly provides apparatus and methods to, ina substantially automated fashion, dynamically monitor RF conditions inthe hosting environment via, e.g., sensors and even the APs themselves,and characterize the venue spatially, including in three dimensions ifrequired. Such characterization enables the network operator, venueoperator, or a proxy thereof, to select and assign use of the space tovenue users or clients for an event (e.g., seating locations to theaudience of a concert) so as to, inter alia, avoid or minimize loss ofuser experience during the user's presence at the event. Moreover, theapparatus and methods described herein enable characterization andcataloging of various types of events, and the data associatedtherewith, so as to enable subsequent use by a computerized controllerapparatus (or event operator) for seating or other location-basedallocations.

By providing the aforementioned capabilities for data monitoring,characterization, cataloging, and location allocation, event organizersare able to account for the Quality Of Wireless (QoW) for eventparticipants in different areas at a venue (and as a function of timeand/or the type of event). Such capabilities also advantageously supportdifferent business models, such as incorporation of different classesfor categorized seating or other location-specific plans (i.e., forticket subscriptions with respective price ranges, trade show booth orvehicle location allocations, etc.).

Conversely, the methods and apparatus described herein may be used toinform or drive decisions on AP placement within the venue, and/orplacement or configuration of components or portions of the venuestructure (including user or spectator seating or display location). Forexample, all else being equal, it would be best to have bandwidth demandspread out more evenly throughout the venue (as opposed to clustering atone or a few locations), so as to mitigate inter-user deviceinterference to the maximum extent practical. While WLAN standards haveprotocols to deal with multiple user contention, at some point too manyusers in a localized spatial region will reduce user experience for allof the user devices involved, due in part to the medium-sharing natureof WLAN multi-user access models, and each individual user device itselfcausing interference for other nearby devices.

Detailed Description of Exemplary Embodiments

Exemplary embodiments of the apparatus and methods of the presentdisclosure are now described in detail. While these exemplaryembodiments are described in the context of the previously mentionedWi-Fi WLAN(s) associated with a managed network (e.g., hybrid fiber coax(HFC) cable architecture having a multiple systems operator (MSO),digital networking capability, IP delivery capability, and a pluralityof client devices), the general principles and advantages of thedisclosure may be extended to other types of wireless networks andarchitectures that are configured to deliver digital data (e.g., text,images, video, and/or audio). Such other wireless networks orarchitectures may be broadband, narrowband, or otherwise, the followingtherefore being merely exemplary in nature.

It will also be appreciated that while described generally in thecontext of a network providing service to a customer or end user (i.e.,within a prescribed venue), the present disclosure may be readilyadapted to other types of environments including, e.g.,commercial/retail or enterprise domain (e.g., businesses), andgovernment/military applications. Myriad other applications arepossible.

Also, while certain aspects are described primarily in the context ofthe well-known Internet Protocol (described in, inter alia, InternetProtocol DARPA Internet Program Protocol Specification, IETF RCF 791(September 1981) and Deering et al., Internet Protocol, Version 6 (Ipv6)Specification, IETF RFC 2460 (December 1998), each of which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety), it will beappreciated that the present disclosure may utilize other types ofprotocols (and in fact bearer networks to include other internets andintranets) to implement the described functionality.

Other features and advantages of the present disclosure will immediatelybe recognized by persons of ordinary skill in the art with reference tothe attached drawings and detailed description of exemplary embodimentsas provided herein.

Service Provider Network

FIG. 1 illustrates a typical service provider network configurationuseful with the features of the wireless network described herein. Thisservice provider network 100 is used in one embodiment of the disclosureto provide backbone and Internet access from the service provider'swireless access points (e.g., Wi-Fi APs operated or maintained by theservice provider or its customers/subscribers), one or more cable modems(CMs) in data communication therewith, or even third party access pointsaccessible to the service provider via e.g., an interposed network suchas the Internet (e.g., with appropriate permissions from the accesspoint owner/operator/user).

As opposed to an unmanaged network, the managed service-provider networkof FIG. 1 advantageously allows, inter alia, control and management of agiven user's access (such user which may be a network subscriber, ormerely an incidental/opportunistic user of the service) via the wirelessaccess point(s), including imposition and/or reconfiguration of variousaccess “rules” or other configurations applied to the wireless accesspoints. For example, the service provider network 100 allows componentsat the venue of interest (e.g., Wi-Fi APs and any supportinginfrastructure such as routers, switches, etc.) to be remotelyreconfigured by the network MSO, based on e.g., prevailing operationalconditions in the network, changes in user population and/or makeup ofusers at the venue, business models (e.g., to maximize profitability orprovide other benefits such as enhanced user experience, as describedinfra), etc.

In certain embodiments, the service provider network also advantageouslypermits the aggregation and/or analysis of subscriber- oraccount-specific data (including inter alia, particular mobile devicesassociated with such subscriber or accounts) as part of the provision ofservices to users under the exemplary delivery models described herein.As but one example, device specific IDs (e.g., MAC address or the like)can be cross-correlated to MSO subscriber data maintained at e.g., thenetwork headend(s) so as to permit or at least facilitate, among otherthings, (i) user authentication; (ii) correlation of aspects of theevent or venue to particular subscriber demographics, such as fordelivery of targeted advertising; and (iii) determination ofsubscription level, and hence subscriber privileges and access tocontent/features. Moreover, device profiles for particular user devicescan be maintained by the MSO, such that the MSO (or its automated proxyprocesses as described subsequently herein) can model the user devicefor wireless capabilities.

The wireless access points (see discussion of FIG. 1a infra) disposed atthe venue(s) of interest can be coupled to the bearer managed network(FIG. 1) via, e.g., a cable modem termination system (CMTS) andassociated local DOCSIS cable modem (CM), a wireless bearer medium(e.g., an 802.16 WiMAX system), a fiber-based system such as FiOS orsimilar, a third-party medium which the managed network operator hasaccess to (which may include any of the foregoing), or yet other means.

The various components of the exemplary embodiment of the network 100include (i) one or more data and application origination sources 102;(ii) one or more content sources 103, (iii) one or more applicationdistribution servers 104; (iv) one or more VOD servers 105, (v) clientdevices and/or Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) 106, (vi) one or morerouters 108, (vii) one or more wireless access point controllers 110(may be placed more locally as shown or in the headend or core” portionof network), (viii) one or more cable modems 112, and/or (ix) one ormore access points 114 (which may or may not include embedded cablemodems 113 as shown). The application server(s) 104, VOD servers 105 andCPE/client device(s) 106 are connected via a bearer (e.g., HFC) network101. A simple architecture comprising one of each of certain components102, 103, 104, 105, 108, 110 is shown in FIG. 1 for simplicity, althoughit will be recognized that comparable architectures with multipleorigination sources, distribution servers, VOD servers, controllers,and/or client devices (as well as different network topologies) may beutilized consistent with the present disclosure. For example, theheadend architecture of FIG. 1a (described in greater detail below), orothers, may be used.

It is also noted that cable network architecture is typically a“tree-and-branch” structure, and hence multiple tiered APs may be linkedto each other or cascaded via such structure.

FIG. 1a shows one exemplary embodiment of a headend architecture. Asshown in FIG. 1a , the headend architecture 150 comprises typicalheadend components and services including billing module 152, subscribermanagement system (SMS) and client/CPE configuration management module154, cable modem termination system (CMTS) and OOB system 156, as wellas LAN(s) 158, 160 placing the various components in data communicationwith one another. It will be appreciated that while a bar or bus LANtopology is illustrated, any number of other arrangements as previouslyreferenced (e.g., ring, star, etc.) may be used consistent with thedisclosure. It will also be appreciated that the headend configurationdepicted in FIG. 1a is high-level, conceptual architecture, and thateach MSO may have multiple headends deployed using custom architectures.

The exemplary architecture 150 of FIG. 1a further includes a conditionalaccess system (CAS) 157 and a multiplexer-encrypter-modulator (MEM) 162coupled to the HFC network 101 adapted to process or condition contentfor transmission over the network. The distribution servers 164 arecoupled to the LAN 160, which provides access to the MEM 162 and network101 via one or more file servers 170. The VOD servers 105 are coupled tothe LAN 160 as well, although other architectures may be employed (suchas for example where the VOD servers are associated with a coreswitching device such as an 802.3z Gigabit Ethernet device). Aspreviously described, information is carried across multiple channels.Thus, the headend must be adapted to acquire the information for thecarried channels from various sources. Typically, the channels beingdelivered from the headend 150 to the client devices/CPE 106(“downstream”) are multiplexed together in the headend, as previouslydescribed and sent to neighborhood hubs (as shown in the exemplaryscheme of FIG. 1b ) via a variety of interposed network components,including coaxial cable and fiber backhauls 121, 122.

As shown in FIG. 1b , the network 101 of FIGS. 1 and 1 a comprises afiber/coax arrangement wherein the output of the MEM 162 of FIG. 1a istransferred to the optical domain (such as via an optical transceiver177 at the headend or further downstream). The optical domain signalsare then distributed to a fiber node 178, which further distributes thesignals over a cable distribution network 180 to a plurality of localservicing nodes 182. This provides an effective 1:N expansion of thenetwork at the local service end. It will be appreciated that the CPE106 shown in FIG. 1b may in fact comprise CMs or CMTS, or other devicessuch as the embedded cable modem AP 113, or wireless APs 202, 204, 206,208 disposed within one or more venues, as described subsequently hereinwith respect to FIGS. 2-2 a.

FIG. 1c illustrates an exemplary “switched” network architecture.Specifically, the headend 150 contains switched broadcast control 190and media path functions 192; these element cooperating to control andfeed, respectively, downstream or edge switching devices 194 at the hubsite which are used to selectively switch broadcast streams to variousservice groups. Broadcast switched architecture (BSA) media path 192 mayinclude a staging processor 195, source programs, and bulk encryption incommunication with a switch 275. A BSA server 196 is also disposed atthe hub site, and implements functions related to switching andbandwidth conservation (in conjunction with a management entity 198disposed at the headend). An optical transport ring 197 is utilized todistribute the dense wave-division multiplexed (DWDM) optical signals toeach hub in an efficient fashion.

In addition to “broadcast” content (e.g., video programming), thesystems of FIGS. 1a and 1c (and 1 d discussed below) also deliverInternet data services using the Internet protocol (IP), although otherprotocols and transport mechanisms of the type well known in the digitalcommunication art may be substituted. One exemplary delivery paradigmcomprises delivering MPEG-based video content, with the videotransported to user client devices (including IP-based STBs orIP-enabled consumer devices) over the aforementioned DOCSIS channelscomprising MPEG (or other video codec such as H.264 or AVC) over IP overMPEG. That is, the higher layer MPEG- or other encoded content isencapsulated using an IP protocol, which then utilizes an MPEGpacketization of the type well known in the art for delivery over the RFchannels. In this fashion, a parallel delivery mode to the normalbroadcast delivery exists; i.e., delivery of video content both overtraditional downstream QAMs to the tuner of the user's STB or otherreceiver device for viewing on the television, and also as packetized IPdata over the DOCSIS QAMs to the user's client device or otherIP-enabled device via the user's cable modem. Delivery in suchpacketized modes may be unicast, multicast, or broadcast.

Referring again to FIG. 1c , the IP packets associated with Internetservices are received by the edge switch 194, and in one embodimentforwarded to the cable modem termination system (CMTS) 156. The CMTSexamines the packets, and forwards packets intended for the localnetwork to the edge switch 194. Other packets are discarded or routed toanother component. As an aside, a cable modem is used to interface witha network counterpart (e.g., CMTS) so as to permit two-way broadbanddata service between the network and users within a given service group,such service which may be symmetric or asymmetric as desired (e.g.,downstream bandwidth/capabilities/configurations may or may not bedifferent than those of the upstream).

The edge switch 194 forwards the packets received from the CMTS 156 tothe QAM modulator, which transmits the packets on one or more physical(QAM-modulated RF) channels to the CPE/client devices. The IP packetsare typically transmitted on RF channels (e.g., DOCSIS QAMs) that aredifferent that the RF channels used for the broadcast video and audioprogramming, although this is not a requirement. The client devices/CPE106 are each configured to monitor the particular assigned RF channel(such as via a port or socket ID/address, or other such mechanism) forIP packets intended for the subscriber premises/address that they serve.For example, in one embodiment, a business customer premises obtains itsInternet access (such as for a connected Wi-Fi AP) via a DOCSIS cablemodem or other device capable of utilizing the cable “drop” to thepremises (e.g., a premises gateway, etc.).

While the foregoing network architectures described herein can (and infact do) carry packetized content (e.g., IP over MPEG for high-speeddata or Internet TV, MPEG2 packet content over QAM for MPTS, etc.), theyare often not optimized for such delivery. Hence, in accordance withanother embodiment of the disclosure, a “packet optimized” deliverynetwork is used for carriage of the packet content (e.g., Internet data,IPTV content, etc.). FIG. 1d illustrates one exemplary implementation ofsuch a network, in the context of a 3GPP IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem)network with common control plane and service delivery platform (SDP),as described in co-owned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/764,746filed Apr. 21, 2010 entitled “METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR PACKETIZEDCONTENT DELIVERY OVER A CONTENT DELIVERY NETWORK,” and issued as U.S.Pat. No. 10,264,029 on Apr. 16, 2019, incorporated herein by referencein its entirety. Such a network provides, inter alia, significantenhancements in terms of common control of different services,implementation and management of content delivery sessions according tounicast or multicast models, etc.; however, it is appreciated that thevarious features of the present disclosure are in no way limited to thisor any of the other foregoing architectures.

It will be appreciated that the foregoing MSO or managed network canadvantageously be leveraged for easy installation of the various APs(and/or any lower-level “children APs” as described in co-owned U.S.patent application Ser. No. 15/002,232 entitled “APPARATUS AND METHODFOR WIRELESS NETWORK SERVICES IN MOVING VEHICLES” filed Jan. 20, 2016,and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 9,918,345 on Mar. 13, 2018, incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety) within a geographic region.Consider, for example, a MSO network that is already pervasivethroughout a given area (i.e., the MSO has numerous customers, bothbusiness and residential and otherwise); in such networks, the MSOalready has significant infrastructure deployed, at a very high level ofgranularity. Hence, if an AP needs to be placed at a given location inorder to effect the coverage/operation for the Wi-Fi network describedherein (e.g., for an impromptu concert or event held at a location notassociated with any particular venue structure), the MSO can easily “tapoff” the existing infrastructure in that area to enable the ad hoc APplacement. This may take the form of e.g., placement of an AP coincidentwith a given customer's extant equipment, and/or placement of newequipment that taps off a local service node.

It is also contemplated that the service provider may utilize or“piggyback” off the infrastructure of other service providers,utilities, etc. For instance, a third party service provider may have ahigh-bandwidth backhaul “drop” near a venue location desired by the MSO;the MSO can then lease, pay, rent, etc. that third party for temporaryuse of the drop (e.g., for the duration of the event, including setup).Similarly, traffic signal poles, lighting, bridges, tunnels, etc. allcontain a wide variety of cabling, conduits, and other infrastructurewhich the (host) MSO could make use of so as to obviate having toperform a new installation (and all of the attendant costs and delaysthereof).

Network addressing in such “composite” or “parent/child” scenarios mayassign each node of a network with an address that is unique to thatnetwork; the address can be used to communicate (directly viapeer-to-peer communications, or indirectly via a series of “hops”) withthe corresponding device. In more complex networks, multiple layers ofindirection may be used to assist in address exhaustion (e.g., oneaddress is logically divided into another range of network addresses).Common examples of network routing protocols include for example:Internet Protocol (IP), Internetwork Packet Exchange (IPX), andOSI-based network technologies (e.g., Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM),Synchronous Optical Networking (SONET), Synchronous Digital Hierarchy(SDH), Frame Relay).

Location Characterization and Advisor Architecture

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a network architecture 200useful in characterizing and advising location of interest (such as forexample seats or trade show booth or other locations) for users. As usedin the present context, the term “users” may include without limitationend users (e.g., individuals, whether subscribers of the MSO network ornot), venue operators, event providers/organizers, or even entitieswithin the MSO itself (e.g., a particular department, system orprocessing entity).

As shown, the architecture generally includes a centralized (i.e.,“cloud” based) server 201 (locally resident with an AP controller, orremotely at the backend or headend of the system), one or more accesspoints 202, 204, 206, 208 in data communication with the central manager201 (e.g., via existing network architectures including any wired orwireless Internet connection 111), as well as any number of clientdevices 212 (smartphones, laptops, tablets, watches, vehicles, etc.)which may or may not be within range of an AP that is served by thecentralized server. Client devices may also have different capabilities(e.g., as “nodes” of the network themselves, as described in greaterdetail infra).

In certain embodiments, each AP 202, 204, 206, 208 is located withinand/or services one or more areas within a venue (e.g., a building,room, or plaza for commercial, corporate, academic purposes, and/or anyother space suitable for Wi-Fi access). Each AP is configured to providewireless network coverage within its coverage or connectivity range 220,222, 224. For example, a venue may have a wireless modem installedwithin the entrance thereof for prospective customers to connect to,including those in the parking lot via inter alia, their Wi-Fi enabledvehicles or personal devices of operators thereof.

In one implementation, the system and methods of the present disclosureinclude determining a desired or optimal installation configuration forone or more wireless interface devices (e.g., APs) within a premises orvenue, such as for example using the methods and apparatus described inco-owned and co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/534,067filed Nov. 5, 2014 and entitled “METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR DETERMININGAN OPTIMIZED WIRELESS INTERFACE INSTALLATION CONFIGURATION”. Asdisclosed therein, a network entity collects information relating to thetype of services required, and generates a customer profile. Thecustomer profile is then used to determine a number and type of wirelessinterface devices required. In one variant, a device chart is generated,which lists a plurality of combinations of categories of service and arespective plurality of device combinations needed to provide optimal(or at least to the desired level of) service thereto. The device chartis consulted to arrive at an appropriate installation work order, whichis submitted for premises installation. As one exemplary use consistentwith the present disclosure, the device chart, customer profile, etc.are used with the monitored RF condition and performance information,described herein, in order to, e.g., generate RF energy heat-maps forfrequency bands of interest, which then can be utilized to determineseating placement, as well as equipment placement. In another example,an event organizer may use the device chart, customer profile, etc. toconfigure a seating chart for an event based on classes or categories(e.g., silver, gold, platinum), where the seating of the more expensiveclasses have more AP's associated thereto, or a more optimal APconfiguration, such that e.g., the customer will receive better wirelessconnectivity depending on how much they pay for their seat(s), or basedon subscriber level (e.g., for MSO-sponsored events). It will beappreciated that the foregoing examples represent examples ofpre-planning of venue configuration, as opposed to post facto planningconducted based on a largely fixed or immutable configuration.Advantageously, the methods and apparatus of the present disclosure areadaptable to both; i.e., venue seating and component placement andconfiguration design, as well as optimization/mapping/allocation incases where the configuration has already been established.

As discussed elsewhere herein, client devices may or may not be withinthe range serviced by AP(s). In one variant of the present disclosure,the range of the AP's is considered when determining seatingallocations—i.e., the customers associated with client devices notwithin the range services by an AP would not pay as much as those withinthe range of one or more APs. Additionally, some client devices may bewithin the range, and thus serviced by, only one AP (e.g., a clientdevice 213 located is within the range 224 of only access point 208),whereas some other client devices may be within range of two or more APswithin a designated area (e.g., client device 212 in may be serviced byone or both of two AP's 206, 208 as the APs' respective ranges 222, 224overlap). In one variant, APs 202, 204 may be in communication (e.g.,via direct connection by way of e.g., Gigabit Ethernet or other wiredconnection, or even over Wi-Fi (e.g., Wi-Fi Direct), as indicated byoverlapping connectivity ranges and connection 226). In one suchimplementation, a sub-network is created by utilizing the techniques toextend and enhance existing networks described in co-owned U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 14/959,948 entitled “APPARATUS AND METHOD FORWIRELESS NETWORK EXTENSIBILITY AND ENHANCEMENT” filed Dec. 4, 2015, andissued as U.S. Pat. No. 10,327,187 on Jun. 18, 2019, incorporated byreference in its entirety. The client device 211 may be serviced by AP204, and thereby receive information stored at either or both APs 202,204 even if AP 204 is out of range. Device 211 may also be serviced in apeer-to-peer sub-network, such as by receiving beacons and/or connecting(e.g., tethering or acting as a relay) with another client device (notshown) serviced by AP 204.

In the exemplary embodiment, one or more APs 202, 204 are directlycommunicative with processes of the backend (i.e., are not controlled bythe controller 210), while one or more APs 206, 208 are connected to(and controlled at least in part by) the AP controller 210. Inaccordance with the discussion supra, APs 202, 204 possessing highprocessing capabilities may be better suited for direct datacommunication with the backend (e.g., centralized server 201), while theAPs 206, 208 without as much processing power may have their loadshifted away and toward controller 210 and/or centralized server 201.Various combinations of processing load may be allocated on a preset ordynamic basis.

In some embodiments, APs of different types, such as locally controlledAPs 206, 208 (i.e., children APs) and non-locally controlled APs 202,204 may transmit data (e.g., notifications derived from the controller210 and/or centralized server 201) to/from a client device 211, 212, 213within their connectivity range as is described in e.g., co-owned U.S.patent application Ser. No. 15/002,232, and that described in U.S.patent application Ser. No. 14/959,948, incorporated supra. The clientdevices 211, 212, 213 can be in range of an non-local or parent AP 204,202 as well as a local or child AP 206, 208.

In an exemplary implementation, the client devices 211, 212, 213 eachinclude both: (i) an application computer program 221 operative to runon the client and, inter alia, enable the user to request information onalternate locations, and receive the information for rendering on thedisplay device of the client; and (ii) a position location apparatus223, such as a GPS or A-GPS receiver that enables determination of theclients location, either by the client itself, or by an external entitysuch as the controller 210 or other “back end” process. It will beappreciated that position location determination techniques other thansatellite-based (e.g., GPS) may be used, provided that such alternativesgive sufficient spatial resolution. For example, to the degree that aclient's association with two APs within the venue (or an AP anddetection by a sensor, described infra) can resolve the client'slocation to say, within a couple feet, such technique may be used.

Note that different spatial resolutions may be dictated by differenttype of venues and/or events. For example, a spatial resolution of e.g.,10 feet (or more) may be sufficient for placement of a kiosk, vehicle,or booth at a trade show, in that less precision is required based onrelative spacing of the individual placements, and other factors.However, for seating, a higher level of precision may be required (e.g.,2-3 feet), in that seating in a venue tends to be clustered moreclosely.

Likewise, the RF propagation characteristics of the venue within thefrequency bands of interest may affect the requisite precision, such aswhere many walls, structures, or other intervening components exist,thereby making the spatial sensitivity (i.e., RF signal variation orperformance as a function of placement) higher than might be experiencedin the case of e.g., a large, open floor plan.

In one or more embodiments, AP's may provide various information via anopen-access network such as a wireless local area network (WLAN), suchas that described in co-owned U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/063,314 filed Mar. 7, 2016 entitled “APPARATUS AND METHODS FORDYNAMIC OPEN-ACCESS NETWORKS,” and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 10,492,034 onNov. 26, 2019, incorporated by reference in its entirety. In oneembodiment, the information provided is contextually relevant tolocations of respective users or devices receiving the information. Asbut one example, the information provided may relate to the availabilityof wireless performance enhancement via use of the API (i.e.,advertising to the client the capability to potentially get better WLANperformance at a different location by accessing the designated API). Inone implementation, the information is provisioned by a network entity(for example, from a service provider network operator) and provided toone or more access points (APs) of the service provider network. Theinformation is bit-stuffed into Wi-Fi beacon frames or other datastructures that are broadcast by the APs to nearby client devices. Areceiving client device extracts the information using a protocolembodied in application software on the client (e.g., the app 221), andmay also initiate a dedicated wireless connection with the AP for e.g.,transmission of content related to the context and/or the bit-stuffedinformation, access of related Internet addresses, API calls, etc.

Now referring to the controller 210, in one or more embodiments,controller 210 is configured to dynamically monitor RF conditions andperformance information in the hosting environment via use of the APs202, 204, 206, 208 and/or the sensors 214, 216, 218.

In one variant, the APs 202, 204, 206, 208 are configured to send one ormore RF key performance indicator (KPI) data sets or reports to thetarget devices/entities (e.g., the controller 210 and/or the centralizedserver 201). RF KPI reports can be used for one or more of thefollowing: (i) monitoring and optimizing the radio network performancein order to provide better subscriber quality or to achieve better useof installed network resources; (ii) immediately detecting unacceptableperformance-related issues in the network, which enables the operator totake rapid actions in order to preserve the quality of the existingnetwork services; and (iii) providing radio frequency planners withdetailed information, which will enable configuring the networkparameters for optimum use.

In one variant, in order to accomplish the foregoing functions, the APs202, 204, 206, 208 are configured to send various specific measures oflink quality to the target devices/entities (e.g., the controller 210and/or the centralized server 201) to be utilized thereby or passed toanother network entity or process. Examples of link quality include,without limitation: received signal strength (RSS/RSSI), signal-to-noiseratio (SNR), carrier-to-noise ratio (CNR), signal-to-interference plusnoise ratio (SINR), carrier-to-interference plus noise ratio (CINR), biterror rate (BER), block error rate (BLER), packet error rate (PER),Frame error rate (FER), etc. Such KPI reporting occurs, in the exemplaryembodiment, upon transmission of a specific request from the controller210 or the centralized server (such as during a profiling “session” asdescribed with respect to FIG. 4b subsequently herein, wherein the AP isconfigured, based on the transmitted request, to implement acharacterization/profiling algorithm and obtain data based thereon),although other schemes will be appreciated, including for example: (i)periodic polling by the controller/server; (ii) periodic reportinginstigated by the AP according to a prescribed schedule; (iii) based onreceipt of a user-invoked request for a new location/seat assignment viathe client device app; and (iv) based on a user accessing theaforementioned “stuffed” beacon API link.

It will also be appreciated that the present disclosure contemplates, aspart of the KPI reporting process: (i) calculation of the relevantparameters by the AP(s), and subsequent transmission to the controllerand/or centralized server; (ii) collection of raw RF parametric data andtransmission of that raw data upstream, and/or (iii) combinations of theforegoing (e.g., shared burden of calculation).

With respect to the sensors 214, 216, 218 (e.g., radio or modem ICs)shown in FIG. 2, these sensors are in one variant specifically locatedwithin one or more pre-designated areas, and within one or more ranges220, 222, 224 (or portions of ranges 220, 222, 224) of the various AP's202, 204, 206, 208. For example, the sensor 216 may be disposed suchthat its effective sensing range 228 is capable of monitoring the RFperformance of portions of the effective ranges 222, 224 of the AP's206, 208, respectively, as shown in FIG. 2. Contrasted to the APs, thesensors 214, 216, 218 in the exemplary embodiment are passive RFmonitoring devices, and do not provide a wireless data connectivityfunction for users to e.g., the MSO backbone or the Internet. Rather,each sensor is configured to (i) receive data, including commands, fromthe controller 210/server 201, and (ii) collect and upload monitoringstatistics or other relevant data to the server 201 and/or controller210, each of (i) and (ii) which may occur via a wired or wireless link.For example, the sensors may include CAT-5/6 network capability (e.g.,via an Ethernet or similar PHY), or alternatively may use a short-or-moderate range wireless link such as Bluetooth, ZigBee, or evenWi-Fi.

In another variant, the sensors 214, 216, 218 comprise substantiallyautomated “user simulators” (in effect, pre-programmed virtual clients)that are configured to monitor and/or upload the wireless performancestatistics either upon request or on an on-going basis (i.e., at regularintervals or continuously) before and/or during an event. To this end,the virtual clients may also be configured to associate with an AP andtransact Wi-Fi (802.11) data with one or more of the APs, much as anyother (actual) client device of a user might do during the event. Hereinlies somewhat of a distinction between the virtual clients of theinstant implementation and the sensors (alone) as described in theembodiment above; the latter merely (passively) collect RF data, such asRF emissions by the APs in the frequency band(s) of interest—“flies onthe wall” as it were. Conversely, the virtual clients can also act asclients themselves; i.e., initiating and receiving actual Wi-Fi datacommunications (thereby simulating actual users using their Wi-Fienabled clients at the virtual client location), as well as theaforementioned monitoring functions. Hence, the virtual clients providean enhanced level of realism and accuracy to any simulations generatedbased on the monitored data; not only can they sense the relevant RFparameters at the prescribed locations, but they can also create datacommunications representative of actual users (including interferencecreated thereby, carrier/medium access contention, etc.), therebyenabling a better simulation. Notably, the virtual clients can also beused in concert if desired; e.g., conduct Wi-Fi data transactions withthe same or different APs simultaneously so as to more closely replicateactual RF spatial performance and propagation conditions during theincipient event.

Moreover, the sensors 214, 216, 218 enable selective polling (e.g., by avenue administrator) of a wireless performance/parameter status for aspecific areas in the venue, such as via transmission of a request fordata from the controller 210. Likewise, virtual client functionality canbe requested on a per-sensor or per-area basis if desired.

In yet another aspect, the present disclosure contemplates creation anduse of an Internet Of Things (IoT) formed by the sensors, such as byembedding the sensors 214, 216, 218 in musical instruments (e.g., drums,guitars, pianos, display terminals, amplifiers, sound system employed inthe venue, etc.). Some of these sensors may be mobile, and hence useddynamically (whether before or during the event) for spatial RFparameter modeling or characterization. For instance, during a concert,some of the foregoing equipment may move during the performance, such aswhere the instrument is carried by a band member, the stage isconfigured to mechanically translate or move positions, props andartistic sets are changed between musical “sets” by the band, etc.).Hence, in such cases, the sensor devices 214, 216, 218 may be equippedwith a PAN or other wireless modem as previously described (as well asthe sensor functionality for the frequency band(s) of interest), suchthat each sensor can, when activated, sense the desired RF parameters atits current location, and transmit data relating thereto back to thecontroller 210 via the PAN interface.

It is noted that many musical instruments (e.g., guitars, microphones,etc.) may also include indigenous wireless capability of their own, suchas for transmission of the musical or voice data generated by theinstrument back to an digital processor/amplifier/mixer and the like,such that the musician is not tethered by a wireline interface (cord).See e.g., the exemplary Line 6 Relay G50 Digital Wireless Guitar System,and the Sony DWZ Series Digital Wireless Guitar Set, each of whichutilize the 2.4 GHz ISM band. Hence, the present disclosure contemplatescases where the sensor 214, 216, 218 is in effect “competing” withmultiple wireless interfaces, which feasibly could include: (i) thereceiver apparatus for the monitored bands of interest (e.g., 2.4 GHz, 5GHz for 802.11); (ii) the sensor wireless PAN interface to thecontroller 210 or other entity (e.g., 915 MHz or 2.4 GHz for ZigBee orBluetooth), (iii) the indigenous wireless system of the musicalinstrument (ostensibly also operating in the 2.4 GHz band). Whiledifferent MCS, spatial diversity (e.g., MIMO), and other schema are usedin the different interfaces, it is none-the-less feasible thatsignificant interference with the receiver interface (i.e., themonitored 802.11 bands) may occur, and hence the present disclosurecontemplates using, inter alia, a “store and hold” time dividedcollection scheme for the sensors 214, 216, 218, such that the PANinterface is not utilized at the same time the receiver interface iscollecting data. Alternatively, a CSMA/CD type approach can be utilized,such that the PAN interface will back off and not transmit data if itsenses use of the relevant carrier by e.g., the musical instrument (orthe APs, of any Wi-Fi enabled virtual or actual clients).

Additionally, in the exemplary embodiment, controller 210 is configuredto forward information (e.g., RF key performance indicator (KPI) reportsor data received from the AP's 202, 204, 206, 208 and/or performancereports or data received from the sensors 214, 216, 218) to thecentralized server 201, including for storage on the database 203. Inone variant, the database 203 is configured to store the variousinformation described throughout the present disclosure, including forfuture planning such as venue/event characterization or modeling beforethe actual event. For example, the database 203, in one variant, storeshistorical data (e.g., date/time, network load, RF parametric, and eventtype data), and also real-time data (i.e., data monitored in real-time,during an event and/or before, such as during the pre-staging orpre-event performance phases) for events and venues. The database mayalso configured to store heat maps and throughput maps generated bye.g., the centralized server 201, or other processes more local to thevenue(s) such as the controller 210. In another variant, centralizedserver 201 and/or database 203 may retrieve and correlate information(e.g., venue, time, load, and event type information) for one or morepast events to use for e.g., seating or other types of locationallocations for one or more future events of a similar kind.

In one embodiment, the centralized server 201 may notify an eventorganizer of the seating allocation indicating areas or seating withvarious levels of wireless coverage. The event organizer correlates theQuality Of Wireless (QoW) for the audience in different areas at thevenues/stadiums/conference halls with different classes for categorizedseating plans. That is, the ticket/subscription prices will depend atleast in part on the QoW of the seats associated with the tickets. See,for example, FIG. 5, which illustrates exemplary categorized seatingplans. With respect to the exemplary seating plan for the football game,“Category-1” tickets/seats may be priced high, where they have betterwireless reception, and therefore user experience; whereas, “Category-2”tickets/seats may be priced medium, because user experience is besteffort, meaning they may have poor/interrupted wireless experience dueto change in wireless environment (no guarantee).

In another embodiment, the mobile devices (e.g., smartphones, tablets,laptops) may install the downloadable application or “app” 221 thatallows the devices to be notified when seating with better wirelessreception becomes available. In one implementation, a common protocol orcompatible API (enabled by, e.g., an application available from theservice provider operating the wireless infrastructure, the user's“host” service provider (e.g., an MSO) who has access to theAP/controller, etc. is used. While the present disclosure envisions acommon protocol/API that is recognized across each of the AP controller,AP, and client device, those of ordinary skill in the related arts willreadily appreciate, given the contents of the present disclosure, thatrecognition of various information (e.g., notifications, etc.) may notrequire such a shared protocol framework; for example, proprietary or“closed” protocols may be used between a 3^(rd) party service and 3^(rd)party client-side application, or the service provider, venue operator,and event provider if desired (see e.g., discussion of FIGS. 2b and 2cbelow). For instance, in one variant, only active subscribers of an MSOcan negotiate better seating arrangements by virtue of an “entitlement”;e.g., by authenticating the user and/or user device as a registeredMSO-authorized user/device via MAC address, password, etc.

Alternatively, the centralized server 201 may be configured to send or“push” notifications to subscribers or event organizers immediately andautomatically once seating becomes available. In yet another variant,the centralized server 201 may notify selective clients of betterseating opportunities, such as those clients that are in poor wirelessconnectivity areas (and hence have likely poor user experience), and whohave opted in for such notifications.

FIG. 2a illustrates an exemplary cable network architecture forproviding WLAN services within, e.g., a venue, which extends from userclient devices within the venue to, inter alia, data centers. In theexemplary embodiment, the architecture 230 is divided into four mainlogical groups: an access network 232, a regional data center 234, anational data center 236, and a service platform 238. The access network232 includes one or more APs (e.g., wireless APs 204, 206, 208) disposedwithin the venue, and end users 211 connected thereto via clientdevices. The regional data center 234 assists in providing services tothe end users 241 by receiving, transmitting, and processing databetween the access network 232 and the backbone 242 of the cablenetwork. In one embodiment, the regional data center 234 is a localinfrastructure that includes controllers (e.g., AP controllers),switches, policy servers and network address translators (NATs) incommunication with the backbone 242. The regional data center 234 maybe, for example, an intermediate data center on premises disposed awayfrom the local APs and user premises (venue), and disposed within alarger infrastructure.

In the exemplary embodiment, the backbone 242 of the network enablesdata communication and services between the regional data center 234 andthe national data center 236 via backhaul, and/or connection to the(public) Internet 111. In one implementation, the national data center236 provides further top-level provisioning services to the regionaldata center 234 (e.g., load balancing, support of Trivial File TransferProtocols (TFTP), Lightweight Directory Access Protocols (LDAP), andDynamic Host Configuration Protocols (DHCP)), as well as providing thesame to other data centers and/or access networks which may be part ofthe network operator's (e.g., MSO's) national-level architecture. Thenational data center 236 also houses in one embodiment more advancedbackend apparatus (e.g., CMTS 156, AP controllers, Layer 3 switches, andservers for the provisioning services). In one embodiment, a separateservice platform 238 may provide auxiliary services to the end userswithin the venue and subscribed to the MSO network provider, includingaccess to mail exchange servers, remote storage, etc. Thus, it can beappreciated that myriad network nodes and entities, as well asconnections therebetween, enable client devices (and ultimately endusers 211) to maintain end-to-end connectivity across the network.

FIG. 2b is a logical block diagram showing logical flows betweenentities within different domains according to one embodiment of thesystem. As shown, the different domains in this embodiment include theservice provider (e.g., MSO) domain 240, the user/subscriber domain 241,and the event provider domain 242. It should be noted that these domainsare not necessarily physically separate or disparate regions or areas,but rather merely logical constructs indicating extent of control by thevarious entities, and in fact may overlap one another physically.

As shown in FIG. 2b , the service provider domain in this embodimentincludes the controller 210 and server 201 (here, referred to as theWireless Quality Profiling Server or WQPS) and associated profiledatabase 203, as well as the sensor(s) 214, 216, 218 (if used) and theAPs 202, 204, 206, 208. A venue location (e.g., seating) planner andticketing API 244 is also part of the service provider domain; this APIis used as a (virtual) access point by both the client app 221 and theticketing entity 246 to exchange data with the service provider domain.For example, in one scenario (described in greater detail subsequentlyherein, the seat advisory app 221 makes an API call to the API 244 toinvoke a “better seat” evaluation. The controller 210 responsively callsthe app 221 to obtain the current physical location of the client device(e.g., via embedded GPS receiver), and the client provides thecontroller with the requested data. The controller 210 then conducts anevaluation (via the sensors/APs, WQPS, and data in the profile DB forthe venue in question), and when determined that a better (i.e., betterwireless performance seat) physically exists, then conducts a call to anAPI of the ticketing entity 246 to return data on what seats/locationsare currently available. The returned data is then matched against thedetermined “better” wireless locations from the WQPS evaluation, and ifthe latter is also reflected in the returned available seat/locationdata, the user is notified via the client app 221.

The domain configuration of FIG. 2b notably places responsibility foroperation of the sensors, APs, controller 210, and the development ofthe models and characterizations of certain venues on the MSO;logically, this makes sense if e.g., the venue utilizes the MSO'sequipment such as APs, CMTS or cable drop, backhaul, etc. So, forinstance, the MSO may install the APs, sensors, etc. within the venue atthe venue owner's request, and maintain and utilize the system (based onrequests from the venue owner and/or event provider) to characterize thevenue pre-setup, post-setup (but pre-event), and/or during the event.

Moreover, the MSO in this embodiment maintains seat planning andselection cognizance, such that the ticketing entity 246 must make anAPI call to the MSO API 244 to check on seat allocations before issuinga ticket (i.e., so as to ensure that the MSO/WQPS has not allocated aseat desired by a non-MSO customer).

In contrast, the domain configuration of FIG. 2c contemplates a morefragmented operational and business model, in that: (i) a separate venueoperator domain 243 exists, and (ii) the venue seating planner API 244is resident within the event provider domain 242 (and hence the MSO mustmake a call to the API 244 to check to see if a “better” seat identifiedby its algorithms is in fact available). Specifically, in thisembodiment, the venue operator is responsible for maintaining theequipment on-site (e.g., via lease from the MSO, or separateacquisition). The venue operator maintains a venue wirelesscharacterization API 250 (e.g., on an externally accessible server ofthe venue's computer network) such that the MSO can, at the behest ofe.g., a user or MSO subscriber who is within the venue, call the API 250to obtain wireless performance data obtained in situ at the venue (e.g.,in real time, such as during an event which the user/subscriber isattending) and determine for the user/subscriber whether a “better” seatis currently available. In this paradigm, the MSO does not control thecollection of data or operation of the sensors, but rather merely callsthe APIs 250 to get the raw data results, which the WQPS 201 then usesto perform its own assessment based on, inter alia, knowledge of thevenue obtained from the profile DB 203. The WQPS is also configured tocall the event provider API with e.g., a location or seat number (oncethe determination is completed), to (i) check on availability, and (ii)upon confirmation from the client via the app 221, reserve or purchasethe better seat immediately.

The foregoing configurations of FIGS. 2b and 2c are merely exemplary ofsome of the possible variants of resource allocation/cognizance withinthe system. Depending on the relationship between venue owner/operator,user/subscriber, service provider, and event provider, the variousfunctions described above can be distributed and/or disposed atdifferent logical locations (i.e., within different domains).

Methods

Various methods of selecting and assigning seating via a networkaccording to the present disclosure are now described with respect toFIGS. 3-5.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a method 300 implementedby controller 210 (and/or centralized server 201, depending onparticular implementation) to dynamically monitor a wireless network,and advise locations (e.g., seating) with better wireless coverage toone or more users of one or more respective client devices, such as uponrequest therefrom. It is noted that the wireless network useful with themethod 300 is not limited to those embodied in FIGS. 2-2 c herein, butrather may be used with any sufficiently provisioned wireless-enabledclient device, and any architecture having sufficient data communicationamong nodes along with the requisite functionality described herein.

At step 302 of the method 300, the managing entity (i.e., controller 210and/or centralized server 201) receives a request from one or more userclient devices for a location or seating with better wireless coveragethan the user's current position. The request may be sent to thecontroller 210 (and/or centralized server 201) via an application 221downloaded on the client device, or through in-browser messaging (e.g.,access by a mobile device browser of a specified URL).

In one alternative embodiment (illustrated in the method 320 of FIG. 3a), no request from a client is issued (and therefore, step 302 isobviated); rather, the controller 210 and/or centralized server 201automatically advises e.g., seating with better wireless coverage to oneor more selective users (such as those who are in a poor coverage orpoor user experience impacted coverage area, or who have opted-in viatheir installed app 221 for notification or “push” data relating topossible upgrades).

At step 304 of the method 300, the location(s) of the one or morerequesting client devices is determined. The location may be determinedvia use of, e.g., GPS/A-GPS or any other navigational technologywell-known in the arts, as described elsewhere herein. In anothervariant, the user(s) of the one or more requesting client devices mayinput the seat number or location into the application 221 or in-browsermessaging system, such as via a venue map displayed on a capacitivetouch screen, or via text entry.

In one alternate implementation, the location of the one or morerequesting client devices may be assumed to be the seat that the one ormore requesting client devices already purchased, thereby obviating theneed for step 304 (see FIG. 3a ). For example, upon identification ofthe user (such as via authentication by password/login), oridentification of the mobile device by e.g., MAC address, theuser/client mobile device identity is used to automatically searchrecords for that user relating to the event/venue in question (such asmay be maintained in MSO or event provider databases), and any recordsidentified are used as the presumed seating location.

At steps 306 and 308 of the method 300, one or more AP's 202, 204, 206,208 and sensors 214, 216, 218 each transmit signals to the controller210 (and/or centralized server 201) relating to monitored RF parametersof interest. In one variant, the APs' and/or sensors' signals may besent to one or more upstream network entities in data communicationtherewith, e.g., cable modem, any backhaul entities (e.g., data centersor database 203), controller 210, CMTS, etc. In another variant, theAP's 202, 204, 206, 208 and sensors 214, 216, 218 may only send signalsto the nearest upstream device, such as the controller 210 in FIG. 2.

In exemplary embodiments, the information sent by the AP's 202, 204,206, 208 per step 306 comprises information relating to the statusand/or the RF conditions of the respective AP's 202, 204, 2206, 208. Forexample, referring to FIG. 2, the AP 206 may send one or more RF KPIreports (discussed elsewhere herein) relating to its operating coveragearea 222, to the requesting or aggregating upstream device( ) (e.g.,controller 210 and/or centralized server 201), including informationrelating to link quality such as e.g., received signal strength (RSSI),signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), carrier-to-noise ratio (CNR),signal-to-interference plus noise ratio (SINR), carrier-to-interferenceplus noise ratio (CINR), bit error rate (BER), block error rate (BLER),packet error rate (PER), etc.

The information sent by the sensors 214, 216, 218 per step 308 maycomprise, for example, data relating to: (i) purely passive RFobservations by the sensor, such as e.g., RSS (relative index, or indBm); (ii) the performance of wireless connectivity (e.g., provided bythe one or more of the AP's within the sensors' 214, 216, 218 respectiveareas), such as BER, data rate, etc. obtained via data communicationsconducted between the AP and the sensors. In one variant, theinformation may comprise one or more performance reports obtained fromthe sensors 214, 216, 218 and correlated to wireless coverage of the oneor more AP's 202, 204, 206, 208. For example, referring to FIG. 2, thesensor 216 may send one or more performance reports relating to thatsensor's area 228, which includes portions of the coverage areas 222,224 for the APs 206, 208, to the aggregating upstream device (e.g.,controller 210 and/or centralized server 201).

The APs 202, 204, 206, 208 and/or sensors 214, 216, 218 are configuredto elicit a reply or “ack” from the entity after receipt. In oneexemplary embodiment, the signals/reports/information are transmittedaccording to a periodic or aperiodic temporal schedule; i.e., asignal/report is sent at every predetermined interval (which may or maynot be equal, and/or predicated on the occurrence of an event).

In another variant, the periodic signals are sent at a predeterminedinterval that may be modified by the AP, the controller 210, or thecentralized server 201. Alternatively, the signals are sent at intervalsdepending on network conditions, e.g., traffic load, number of expectedpings, expected network conditions (e.g., known offline connections inthe network), size of network, time of day (e.g., peak hours). Forinstance, pings are sent at relatively longer intervals during peaktimes to keep traffic from being congested.

Accordingly, the signals/information from the one or more AP's 202, 204,206, 208 and/or sensors 214, 216, 218 may be collected periodically(during certain intervals, or during times when sending such informationwill not dramatically affect, e.g., the load of the network),continuously, or upon request from the controller 210 and/or centralizedserver 201.

At step 310 of the method 300, the information (e.g., RF KPI reports andperformance data) collected from the APs 202, 204, 206, 208 and/orsensors 214, 216, 218 is processed to determine whether there are anyavailable alternate seats with better wireless coverage than thewireless coverage of the current seating of one or more requestingclient devices (step 312). Any other information (e.g., real-time and/orhistoric data; historic data including, inter alia, correlated time,load, and event type data from one or more past event) may be used inthe determination as well. In one variant, the controller 210,centralized server 201, and/or profiling database 203 utilizesartificial intelligence (AI) to correlate/process the information inorder to make the determination. In another variant, the controller 210,centralized server 201, and/or profiling database 203 are optionallyconfigured to profile the RF status of the event at specific times ortime periods. In one variant, the profiling comprises generating aheat-map (step 311). The heat-map is configured to resolve thespatial/volumetric heat map to the seat level (i.e., correlating RFconditions to individual seats in a floor plan; see FIG. 5 for exemplaryfloor plans).

Additionally, the controller 210 and/or centralized server 201 mayoptionally store the information (e.g., RF KPI reports from the AP's202, 204, 206, 208, performance reports from sensors 214, 216, 218,and/or generated heat-map) in the profiling database 203 for futureplanning.

When available seating is found, per step 312, the controller 210 and/orcentralized server 201 then automatically notifies the one or morerequesting client devices of the location(s) with better wirelessconnectivity (step 314). Alternatively, the controller 210 and/orcentralized server 201 may send notifications to selective clients, suchas those in poor coverage/probable user experience impacted coverageareas (see FIG. 3A).

However, in some embodiments, when available seating is not found, perstep 312, the controller 210 and/or centralized server 201 may notifythe one or more requesting client devices that no locations with betterwireless connectivity are available, and that the one or more requestingclient devices will automatically be notified when available seating isfound (per step 316). The process may then repeats back to either step304 (dynamically determining the location(s) of the one or morerequesting devices, assuming the client device may have moved), or tosteps 306 and/or 308 (dynamically determining the RF condition andperformance information, assuming the one or more requesting devicesremain stationary, such as in the seat they originally purchased).

In the exemplary embodiment, heat-maps and/or any other information(e.g., RF condition, time, load, event type, real-time and/or historic)may be used to map seating arrangement based on classes or categories.In practice, the classes seating with better wireless coverage willtypically be priced higher than the classes of seating with poorerwireless coverage. See FIG. 5 which illustrates two exemplary maps thatmay be generated in accordance with the present disclosure. The maps ofFIG. 5 include one exemplary map for a music concert and anotherexemplary map for football game. In the exemplary map of the musicconcert in FIG. 5, there are three designated classes of seating: silver(with less capable wireless coverage), gold (with good wirelesscoverage), and platinum (with excellent wireless coverage).

In an example scenario, an audience member is seated in the auditoriumat a silver category of seating, trying to upload/share a live videowith friends/family, but the wireless user experience is very poor undercurrent event conditions. The audience member becomes disappointed fornot being able to share the event live streaming with friends/family dueto wireless connectivity issues. Therefore, the audience member invokesthe (seat advisor) application consistent with the present disclosurefrom his/her mobile device. The system consistent with the presentdisclosure then provides better seating location(s) from the availableun-occupied seats. The provision of better seating, in one variant, isin accordance with client's privileges/eligibility—i.e., if theavailable seating is in the platinum class of seating, the audiencemember may have to pay more in order to be able to sit in that class.

FIG. 3a illustrates another exemplary embodiment of a method 320implemented by the controller 210 and/or centralized server 201 tomonitor conditions of a wireless network, and provide location-basednotifications to clients relating to wireless connectivity.

At steps 322 and 324, the controller 210 and/or centralized server 201queries the APs and the sensors for their respective information (e.g.,RF KPI reports from the AP's and the performance or other data reportsfrom the sensors). As noted above, the signals/information from the oneor more APs 202, 204, 206, 208 and/or sensors 214, 216, 218 may becollected periodically (during certain intervals, or during times whensending such information will not significantly load of the network),continuously, and/or upon affirmative request from the controller 210and/or centralized server 201. Other schemes may be used as wellconsistent with the method 320 of FIG. 3 a.

Per step 326, the received data from the APs and sensors is thenprocessed by the designated processing entity (e.g., the centralizedserver 201) to characterize the RF spatial conditions of the relevantportions of the venue. In one variant, this data processing comprisesalgorithmically correlating the RF condition and performance informationof the various areas of the venue with floor plans or other suchdescriptive data, so as to determine the relative or absolute wirelessperformance of a given location or feature of the venue (e.g., to aparticular seat). Specifically, since the physical positions of the APsand presumably at least some of the sensors are known (and entered intothe profile DB 203 of the architecture of FIG. 2), the monitoring datacan be correlated to particular locations within the floor plan (orspatial volume) of the venue, which can then be correlated to locationsof interest to users (such as seat locations, trade show boothlocations, auto vehicle display locations, etc).

It will be appreciated that the data processing by the processing entity(e.g., server 201) may be conducted: (i) irrespective of availablelocation, such as where a “heat map” (e.g., 2-D or 3-D plot of mean RSSIor other parameter of interest which is reflective of wireless coverageby an AP) is generated for all locations for which monitored data isavailable, irrespective of possible availability; alternatively (ii)after an availability filter is applied (i.e., mapping only those areascorresponding to currently available locations or seats), or (iii)combinations of the foregoing.

The availability of seating or other locations of interest may bedetermined via an occupancy tracker process implemented by thecontroller 210 and/or centralized server 201. In one embodiment, theoccupancy tracker is merely configured to call to the relevant eventprovider API (see e.g., FIGS. 2b and 2c ) with a seat number, upon whichthe API returns data on availability back to the calling tracker process(e.g., Y/N, or conditional Y/N with time or other condition specified).However, for less “Scripted” or rigid venues/events, such informationmay not be available on a per-seat or per-location basis. Hence, in analternate embodiment, the occupancy tracker is configured to monitor theavailability of seats via use of one or more of: cameras, sensors, GPSin audience mobile devices (such as via use of the location advisoryapplication 221 running thereon), etc.

In one variant, at steps 328 and 330, the monitored RF performance datais stored in the profiling database 203 for future planning. The storeddata may comprise e.g., any generated heat-maps, and any resolving thespatial/volumetric heat map to the prescribed level of resolution (e.g.,correlating the monitoring data/heat map to individual seats in thevenue floor plan) (step 328).

When available seating (with better wireless performance) is located,per step 332, the controller 210 and/or centralized server 201 thenautomatically notifies the one or more selective clients, such as thosein coverage areas with performance below that associated with theidentified available location or seating, per step 334. For example, ifthe analysis of the monitored data and heat map show that certain areasof the venue have performance levels of a given level or quality, allother areas greater than a prescribed value below that given level orquality (whether on an absolute or relative quantitative or qualitativescale) are identified algorithmically, and seats within those identifiedareas are candidates for further notification (e.g., by correlation ofthe seat number to a user ticket database, which can then becross-correlated to the user's mobile device via e.g., the MSO'ssubscriber database). Alternatively, “stuffed” beacons as describedelsewhere herein may be used to (selectively or non-selectively) notifyusers within a coverage area of a given AP that better coverage exists.The user's mobile device browser can also be used to provide suchnotifications, such as via an established HTTP/HTTPS session between thebrowser and the central server 201 or its proxy.

However, when performance-enhanced available seating is not found perstep 332, the process returns to steps 322, 324, and 326 to dynamicallymonitor and process information relating to RF conditions of variousareas of the venue and performance of one or more of the APs.

FIG. 3b is a ladder diagram illustrating one particular implementationof the methodology 300 of FIG. 3. In this implementation, the controller210 dynamically monitors a wireless network, and the centralized server201 (Wireless Performance Profiling Server) advises seating with betterwireless coverage to one or more users of one or more respective clientdevices upon request sent from a computer application 221 disposed onthe client device and in communication with a Seat Advisory App” (SAA)function 336, which may be operative to run on e.g., the controller 210or the central server 201.

Referring now to FIG. 4, an exemplary embodiment of a method 400implemented by the controller 210 and/or centralized server 201 tomonitor a wireless network, and provide optimal location allocations toan event organizer, is described.

At step 402 of the method, the venue identity is determined, such as viaa stored unique venue identifier. This identifier may be unique to thevenue instance (e.g., a particular structure), or merely unique to aclass of similar venues (e.g., non-domed elliptical football stadiums).

At step 404, the event type is identified. Again, either specific orclass-specific identifiers may be used in describing the event (e.g.,concert by Band X, or rock music concert, respectively).

Per step 406, the identification data from steps 402 and 404 is used toenter the profile DB 203 (FIG. 2) to attempt to identify similar eventsand/or venues. If a matching entry or entries is/are found per step 408,the data associated with those entries is utilized per step 410 todetermine a seat allocation for the incipient event, such as one basedon category or class of user or subscriber (e.g., silver/gold/platinumlevel ticket, or MSO customer/non-MSO customer, etc.). As an aside,since an empty venue (e.g., auditorium/conference hall) is free frommost man made noise and/or interference sources, the empty environmentlikely produces the best wireless coverage and user experience.Accordingly, in the exemplary embodiments of the methods disclosedherein, the in situ information (e.g., RF KPI and performance reports)from the AP's 202, 204, 206, 208 and/or sensors 214, 216, 218 is ideallycollected during the pre-staging phase (i.e., before performance/mainevent occurs; e.g., band setup/sound checks). By equipping the venuewith the necessary items to organize and ultimately conduct the event,the RF conditions more closely resemble the RF conditions during theevent. However, the presence of humans and their client devices willalso present various (typically) negative characteristics for wirelesspropagation. Therefore, in one variant, per step 408, the controller 210and/or centralized server 201 accesses the profiling database 203 forhistorical data relating to past events similar to the current event(step 308) taken at the time of the event (or immediately pre-event), soas to identify the most relevant data. However, if the data present inthe DB 203 is merely “empty environment” data, it's relevance isquestionable, and hence the algorithm 400 enables confirmation viacurrent data (presumably obtained during or immediately before the eventoccurs) per step 412 described below.

If no matching entries are found in the profile DB per step 408, thenper step 412, the APs 202, 204, 206, 208 and sensors 214, 216, 218 aresolicited to transmit KPI reports and performance data, respectively, tothe controller 210 and/or centralized server 201, such as via queries orpolling messages issued from the controller 210 and/or centralizedserver 201 to the AP's and the sensors for their respective information.

Additionally, the controller 210 and/or centralized server 201 mayoptionally store the information (e.g., RF KPI and performance reports)from the APs 202, 204, 206, 208 and/or sensors 214, 216, 218 in theprofiling database 203 for future planning, especially if the gathereddata was obtained under representative conditions as described above.

Per step 414, the monitored information is then processed to generateheat maps and other desired data which can be utilized to determineseating allocations (step 416), as previously described.

In some variants, the processing comprises utilizing computer-baseddynamic RF modeling to correlate the present (real-time) informationwith the historic information, including to find past events/venuessimilar to the present event/venue (e.g., where there is no precisematch for the venue/event per steps 406 and 408). Once one or more“similar” past events is/are found, the controller 210 and/orcentralized server 201 then utilizes the present performance data and/orthe historic information to select and allocate seating arrangements,such e.g., based on classes. For example, in one embodiment pastdata/historical reports (such as KPI built during “base-lining” thevenue staging) captured during one or more of a similar type of event asthe incipient event and conducted in the same venue, is used as input toone or more modeling algorithms in order to characterize the incipientevent. For an exemplary concert, while audience seating distribution,ancillary display placement (e.g., large-screen HDTVs disposed withinthe venue and visible to certain parts of the audience which do not havea good/direct view of the stage), and musical instrument placement underthe prior art might be driven solely by other factors such as acoustics,aesthetics (stage appearance), visibility of the performers to theaudience, etc., characterization of the environment using the methods ofthe present disclosure provides additional data which can be used indetermining seating configuration and instrument placement (inconjunction with the foregoing factors). Placement of e.g., metallicelements such as tables, instruments, scaffolding or support structuresin areas where Wi-Fi AP coverage impacted (due to reflection/multi-path)can advantageously be avoided (or at least the effects of suchplacements mitigated in cases where the placement options are limited orcontrolled by other factors).

In one implementation, the aforementioned algorithmic analyses areconducted in effect transparently to the end user, using computerized 3Dmodeling algorithms operative to run on the controller 210 and/or thecentralized server, depending on the particular architecture chosen.Specifically, the software is coded to model 3D WLAN wave propagationwithin an indoor (or outdoor, such as for “open air” events or thoseheld in largely open-top venues) with the frequency bands of interest,including e.g., 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz.

In one embodiment, the modeling software is configured to analyze RFpropagation and loss mechanisms including one or more of: (i)reflection, which occurs when an RF signal encounters a surface that islarge relative to the wavelength of the signal; (ii) diffraction, whichtypically occurs at the edge of an (RF) impenetrable body, such as onethat is large compared to wavelength of the RF signal of interest; and(iii) scattering, which occurs when an RF signal encounters an objectwhose size is on the order of the wavelength of the RF signal or less.

Hence, in an exemplary indoor environment such as a venue, reflectionmay occur at large obstacles, such as where plane waves are incident ona surface having dimensions that are very large relative compared to thewavelength. In the present case, c=λf, so for 2.4 GHz, the wavelength(λ) is (3 E+8 m/s)/2.4 E+9 Hz)=⅛ m or 12.5 cm, while for 5 GHz, thewavelength is roughly 6 cm. Hence, anything within the venue having asize much greater than such dimensions is a potential WLAN reflector.

Likewise, scattering occurs at smaller obstacles or structures,including when the plane waves are incident upon an object whosedimensions are on the order of a wavelength or less (e.g., a half-footor less in the exemplary bands), which clearly may exist in any numberof structures and their components (e.g., metallic brackets, supports),musical instruments, seats, display devices, etc. Such scattering causesenergy to be redirected in many directions, in effect diffusing theintensity of the incident signal upon reflection.

RF wave diffraction at e.g., edges may occurs (according to Huygen'sprinciple) when there is an obstruction between the transmitter andreceiver antennas, and secondary waves are generated behind theobstructing body. Notably, the higher the RF signal frequency, the lesssuch diffraction occurs.

RF wave penetration of objects will allow propagation of waves whenthere is an obstruction(s) between the transmitter and receiver, withvarying levels of absorption of the penetrating signals based on theparticular properties of the object(s).

In terms of wireless (data) channel performance, path losses and“shadowing” are considered, as are self-interference mechanisms.Specifically, multipath (Rayleigh) fading and Doppler shift (for movingobjects, if applicable) can result in so-called “delay spread”, ineffect producing inter-symbol interference (ISI) due to blurring of thearrival times of the radio waves. Path losses are generally a functionof transmission-to-receiver distance, and may vary over a comparativelylonger time frame. Similarly, shadowing (attenuation due to structuresor objects) may be largely time-invariant or long term in nature andlarge in terms of area scale, and is often modeled in terms of alog-normal distribution. Fading, in contrast, can have smaller timescale variations (e.g., as a user walks with their mobile device), andmay be modeled using e.g., Rayleigh or Ricean distributions.

Other effects on channel quality may result from background noise (e.g.,low SNR), as well as other users (including effects due to commonchannel interference (CCI) and adjacent-channel interference (ACI)).

Exemplary techniques for evaluating WLAN and other RF signals andmodeling environments and which may bus used consistent with certainaspects of the present disclosure are described in U.S. Pat. No.9,648,466 issued May 9, 2017 and entitled “Generating a model forpositioning”, U.S. Pat. No. 9,115,997 issued Aug. 25, 2015 and entitled“Modeling characteristics of a venue,” and U.S. Pat. No. 9,609,617issued Mar. 28, 2017 and entitled “Locating electromagnetic signalsources”, each of the foregoing incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety. Likewise, exemplary commercial RF indoor heat-mapping softwarewhich may be adapted for use consistent with the present disclosureincludes the “Wireless InSite” software offered by Remcom Corporation ofState College, Pa., although others may be readily substituted, such asthe CINDOOR tool described in “CINDOOR: An engineering tool for planningand design of wireless systems in enclosed spaces,” F. P Tones, et al.,IEEE Antennas Propagat. Meg., vol. 41, no. 4, pp. 11-22, September 1999.Incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

It will also be appreciated that, based on channel quality, varyingtypes of operations can or cannot be performed at a prescribed range.For example, within a “transmission” range, communication over thechannel with comparatively low error rate is possible. At greater ranges(from the transmitter), detection of the transmitted signal by one ormore receivers is possible, but data communication over the channel maynot be possible (or at least it is severely degraded in terms ofthroughput due to high BER/PER/FER associated with the received anddecoded data). At yet greater ranges from the transmitter (a so-called“interference” range), a transmitted signal may not be detected by thereceiver, such as where it is below the detection threshold prescribedby the receiver device's air interface and associated protocols, such as−80 dBm).

It will be appreciated, however, that certain implementations of theinvention may utilize purely a “similarity” analysis (as opposed tomodeling per se) to at least identify the expected performance of agiven venue under certain conditions. For example, in the simple case ofan incipient musical act which will be positioned on a fixed stagewithin a venue, and fixed venue seating, and no other salient structuraladditions to the venue or stage, the RF performance obtained during suchan event may substantially replicate that of a prior musical act on thesame stage (and generally in the same position), especially at generallysimilar audience attendance, since the prior (historical) act can bepresumed to have generally similar types of electrical/electronicinstruments, wireless microphones, etc., and the audience can bepresumed to be generally laden with mobile wireless device users withwireless devices generally presumed to have WLAN, Bluetooth, andcellular (e.g., CDMA or LTE-based) interfaces. Therefore, without any apriori knowledge or modeling, the heat map generated for the incipientmusical event can be used as the basis for the seat allocation orsimilar functionality described elsewhere herein.

The foregoing approach can also include a “verification” function, suchas where the heat map data obtained during the prior event is verifiedduring the incipient event (when it occurs) using indigenous sensors,APs, etc. within the venue as described with respect to FIG. 2 above.For example, in one implementation, the software is configured to, oncea sufficiently similar event/venue has been identified, perform heat mapgeneration during the event to confirm general data correspondence atcertain prescribed “test” locations within the venue, in order tovalidate the selected prior model/data.

Returning again to the method 400 of FIG. 4, at step 418, the seatingallocations are then provided to (or otherwise coordinated with) theevent organizer.

FIG. 4a is a ladder diagram illustrating one particular implementationof the methodology 400 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 4b is a logical flow diagram of an exemplary method forcharacterizing the wireless performance of a venue as a function ofconfiguration changes thereto (e.g., in preparation for an event),according to the present disclosure. As shown, the method 450 includesfirst obtaining venue baseline configuration data, such as from theprofile DB 203 or other such source (step 452). Next, per step 454, thefirst (zero-th) location of interest within the venue is specified. Thismay be for example a large subsection of the venue, smaller portion, oreven a specific seat, depending on the desired granularity.

Next, per step 456, the RF performance and operational data for theselected location are obtained from one or more relevant sensors 214,216, 218 and APs 202, 204, 206, 208, as previously described herein.

Per step 458, the location index is incremented, and the next locationwithin the venue evaluated per step 456, and the data collectedrecorded. When the last location has been characterized (step 460), thebaseline data for all locations is processed, e.g., into a spatial 2-Dor 3-D heat map (step 464), and the processed data stored.

Next, after the configuration of the venue has been modified (e.g., forsetup of a band), the relevant configuration data for the modificationsis obtained (step 466). This data may include for example locations ofwalls or partitions, setup of the stage, placement of musicalinstruments, alteration of the location of the APs, sensor locations,etc.

Then, per steps 468 through 478, the above-described baselinecharacterization is repeated, only for the new configuration. A new heatmap is generated and stored, and the two heat maps (baseline andaltered) can be algorithmically compared and correlated to theconfiguration change data, which can then be used to, for instance,extrapolate performance data for similar changes to other venues (e.g.,installation of a metal framed stage of equivalent size in another,different music hall).

It will be further appreciated that the methods and apparatus describedherein may be configured so as to avoid “hunting” or unduly frequentcommunications to the client device (whether via installed client app,browser app, or other messaging context such as SMS). Specifically, inthat RF spatial performance parameters potentially may varysignificantly within extremely short temporal windows under certainscenarios (e.g., very mobile performers, movement of the audience andtheir client devices, changes in EMI due to unshielded lighting cableemissions under different lighting “sets”, etc.), it is desirable tosmooth what may be otherwise choppy user experience by e.g., temporalaveraging of KPI and/or performance data, and/or selective filtering ofanomalous data. For example, seating evaluations for a given clientdevice may be limited to occur only during certain temporal windows,and/or with only a maximum prescribed frequency. In this manner, usersare not “seat hopping” at excessive frequency.

Similarly, trend analysis may be utilized, such that anticipatoryanalysis of the venue and its conditions may occur in environments whichexhibit detectable trends (e.g., degradation of general RF performancedue to e.g., incipient weather events, solar radiation, increasedincidence of air traffic, etc.), such that the affected users can beadvised or migrated to better coverage or performance areas before userexperience is significantly impacted. Consider the case of multi-dayevent such as a trade show within a convention center; if a knowninterferer, outage, etc. is incipient, the user might be advised torelocate their display, booth, etc. to avoid a service interruption.

Client Device

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary wireless client device 211 according tothe present disclosure. As shown, the client device 211 includes, interalia, a processor subsystem 602, a memory module 604, connection manager606, a WLAN radio frequency (RF) network interface 608, a locationadvisory module (application) 610, PAN module 612, a WLAN transmitmodule 614, and a WLAN receive module 616.

In one exemplary embodiment, the processor 602 may include one or moreof a digital signal processor, microprocessor, field-programmable gatearray, or plurality of processing components mounted on one or moresubstrates (e.g., printed circuit board). The processor subsystem 602may also comprise an internal cache memory. The processor subsystem isin communication with a memory subsystem 604, the latter includingmemory which may for example comprise SRAM, flash, and/or SDRAMcomponents. The memory subsystem may implement one or more of DMA-typehardware, so as to facilitate data accesses as is well known in the art.The memory subsystem of the exemplary embodiment containscomputer-executable instructions which are executable by the processorsubsystem.

In this and various embodiments, the processor subsystem 602 isconfigured to execute at least one computer program stored in memory 604(e.g., a non-transitory computer readable storage medium).

In one embodiment, the location advisory application 610 is a softwaremodule (application) operative to run on the processor 602. The locationadvisory module 610 is configured to receive messages (e.g.,notifications that a location or seat with better wireless connectivityis available) via the WLAN interface 608 or the PAN interface 612 (oreven a cellular data connection if present, such as an LTE/LTE-Ainterface, not shown), and perform various functions related to displayof information (such as display of a graphic of the venue).

In one or more embodiments, the seat advisory manager includes aninternal cache or memory configured to hold data associated with one ormore messages. In some cases, the processor 602 or the seat advisorymanager 610 may not be able to be interpret certain messages (at leastimmediately). For instance, in some cases, the received messages mayhave incomplete information (e.g., with respect to content fragmentedacross multiple subsequent frames), or be encrypted or scrambled with ascheme unknown to the client device. In one variant, messages that haveshown no correlation with any known information or with other signalsmay be discarded from memory immediately or after a period of time. Insome embodiments, application program interfaces (APIs) such as thoseincluded in an MSO-provided mobile application or those nativelyavailable on the client device 600 (e.g., as part of the computerprogram noted supra) may also be stored in memory 604. Such APIs mayinclude common network protocols or programming mechanisms configured toenable communication with other network entities, such as for datarequests or provision of data to the controller 210 or other networkentity. For example, the location manager app 610 on the client may beconfigured to make an API call to a stored API URL or address to obtaindata relating to the map or extant seating within the current venue.

The WLAN radio/modem subsystem of the client device 600 comprises a TXtransmit module 614 and RX receive module 616. The WLAN networkinterface 608 generally incorporates an assembly of filters, low noiseamplifiers (LNAs), power amplifiers (PAs), and antenna assemblies thatare configured to transmit a modulated waveform via the OFDM airinterface. The radio/modem subsystem may be configured to support MIMO(multiple input, multiple output) antenna technology in which multipleantennas are used to transmit and receive signaling. With MIMO, multipleindependent data streams can be transmitted in parallel using the sametime-frequency resource. To distinguish the data streams sharing thissame time-frequency resource, spatial division multiplexing is applied.Those of ordinary skill in the related arts will readily appreciate thatSISO (single in, single out), SIMO (single in, multiple out), and MISO(multiple in, single out) antenna schemes may be substituted withequivalent success.

The client device 600 of the present disclosure is primarily directed tomobile consumer electronics devices, such as, but not limited to mobiledevices such as handheld computers, PDAs, personal media devices (PMDs),smartphones, tablets, and “phablets,” vehicle infotainment or similarsystems, and personal computers (PCs), and minicomputers, whetherdesktop, laptop, or otherwise. Artisans of ordinary skill will readilyappreciate that consumer electronics devices may incorporate variousother assorted components necessary to support typical functions of suchdevices, including power modules, peripherals modules, display modules(associated with, e.g., a display screen, UI, GUI), camera modules,voice codec modules, etc.

It will also be appreciated that in some implementations of the presentdisclosure, the WLAN or other modem of one or more client devices may beused as the RF sensors described above. For example, in one suchimplementation, the controller 210 may establish data communication withthe client device(s) of interest via a WLAN data channel with theserving AP within the venue, over which the controller 210 can transmitcommands (or even firmware updates or configuration changes) toreconfigure the WLAN modem of the client device to operate as a sensorand collect/report data. This approach may be as benign as configuringthe client device modem to simply report data to the control which mayalready be collected as part of the extant WLAN protocol (e.g., RSSImeasurements made by the client modem) while continuing data operationsbetween the client and the AP, or more pervasive changes such as wherethe WLAN data connection is suspended or dropped for a period of time inorder to permit the client modem to collect and store data regarding theprevailing RF environment in one or more frequency bands of interest,such collection which may be inconsistent with (or require resourcesthat are necessary for) normal data communications. The changes inconfiguration may also include a sensitivity analysis or prescribedalgorithm or routine to sample the prevailing RF environment at thelocation of the client, such as where e.g., client WLAN Tx power inincreased/reduced, then MCS is changed and then returned to originalstate, then beamforming/spatial diversity is changed then returned,etc., with the data obtained by the modem during such changes recordedand sent to the controller 210 via the AP.

In another implementation, the aforementioned beacon-stuffing approachcan be used by the controller 210 (via the communicative AP) to transmit“side channel” data relating to configuration changes or reports whichenable and/or cause the client device to function as a sensor (at leastincidentally or intermittently) as previously described.

Controller Apparatus

FIG. 7 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a controller apparatus 210according to the present disclosure. As shown, the controller includes,inter alia, a processor 702, a memory module 704, a backend MSO (e.g.,headend, backhaul) network interface 710, and a front-end network (e.g.,LAN, WLAN) interface 708. Although the exemplary controller 210 may beused as described within the present disclosure, those of ordinary skillin the related arts will readily appreciate, given the presentdisclosure, that the controller apparatus may be virtualized and/ordistributed within other core network entities (thus having ready accessto power for continued operation), and hence the foregoing apparatus 210is purely illustrative.

More particularly, the exemplary controller 210 can be located withinnear or at the centralized manager, e.g., MSO; an intermediate entity,e.g., within a data center, such as an AP controller; and/or within“cloud” entities or other portions of the infrastructure of which therest of the wireless network (as discussed supra) is a part. In someembodiments, the controller 210 may be one of several controllers, eachhaving equivalent effectiveness or different levels of use, e.g., withina hierarchy (e.g., controller 210 may be under a “parent” controllerthat manages multiple slave or subordinate controllers, such as thoseserving individual venues or portions of a particular venue).

In one embodiment, the processor 702 may include one or more of adigital signal processor, microprocessor, field-programmable gate array,or plurality of processing components mounted on one or more substrates.The processor 702 may also comprise an internal cache memory. Theprocessing subsystem is in communication with a memory subsystem 704,the latter including memory which may for example comprise SRAM, flash,and/or SDRAM components. The memory subsystem may implement one or moreof DMA type hardware, so as to facilitate data accesses as is well knownin the art. The memory subsystem of the exemplary embodiment containscomputer-executable instructions which are executable by the processorsubsystem. A mass storage device (e.g., HDD) 707 may also be includedfor e.g., non-volatile storage of data files, programs, etc.

The processing apparatus 702 is configured to execute at least onecomputer program stored in memory 704. The computer program of theexemplary embodiment shown includes a RF condition and performancemanager application program 712. The RF condition and performancemanager 712 is software or firmware module that executes on theprocessor 702 to implement (or facilitate implementation of) the methodsdescribed above with respect to FIGS. 3-4 b, as applicable. The RFcondition and performance manager is configured to manage signals ormessages received upstream (sent from, e.g., an AP such as one utilizingthe architecture 200 of FIG. 2) that contain, inter alia, (i)information that allows the controller (or other network devices thatreceive and/or relay the signal upstream) to ascertain that the RFconditions of the AP, (ii) information about the origin/routing of thesignal, and/or (iii) instructions on handling of the signal.

In some embodiments, application program interfaces (APIs) such as thoseincluded in an MSO-provided applications 712, installed with otherproprietary software, or natively available on the controller apparatus(e.g., as part of the computer program noted supra or exclusivelyinternal to the RF condition and performance manager module logic 712)may also reside in the internal cache or other memory 704. Such APIs mayinclude common network protocols or programming languages configured toenable communication with other network entities as well as receipt andtransmit signals that a receiving device (e.g., AP) may interpret.

In one embodiment, the controller 210 is configured to register knowndownstream devices, other backend devices, and wireless client devices(remotely located or otherwise), and centrally control the broaderwireless network (and any constituent sub-networks). Such configurationinclude, e.g., providing network identification (e.g., to APs, CMs andother downstream devices, or to upstream devices), managing networkcongestion, and managing capabilities supported by the wireless network.

In one embodiment, the backend interface 710 is configured to transactone or more network address packets with other networked devices,particularly backend apparatus necessary to communicate with thecentralized server 201 (e.g., CMTS, Layer 3 switch, network monitoringcenter, MSO) according to a network protocol. Common examples of networkrouting protocols include for example: Internet Protocol (IP),Internetwork Packet Exchange (IPX), and Open Systems Interconnection(OSI) based network technologies (e.g., Asynchronous Transfer Mode(ATM), Synchronous Optical Networking (SONET), Synchronous DigitalHierarchy (SDH), Frame Relay). In one embodiment, the backend networkinterface 710 operates in signal communication with the backbone of thecontent delivery network (CDN), such as that of FIGS. 1-2. Theseinterfaces might comprise, for instance, GbE (Gigabit Ethernet) or otherinterfaces of suitable bandwidth capability.

It will also be appreciated that the two interfaces 708, 710 may beaggregated together and/or shared with other extant data interfaces,such as in cases where a controller function is virtualized withinanother component, such as an MSO network server performing thatfunction.

It will be recognized that while certain aspects of the disclosure aredescribed in terms of a specific sequence of steps of a method, thesedescriptions are only illustrative of the broader methods of thedisclosure, and may be modified as required by the particularapplication. Certain steps may be rendered unnecessary or optional undercertain circumstances. Additionally, certain steps or functionality maybe added to the disclosed embodiments, or the order of performance oftwo or more steps permuted. All such variations are considered to beencompassed within the disclosure disclosed and claimed herein.

While the above detailed description has shown, described, and pointedout novel features of the disclosure as applied to various embodiments,it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions, and changesin the form and details of the device or process illustrated may be madeby those skilled in the art without departing from the disclosure. Thisdescription is in no way meant to be limiting, but rather should betaken as illustrative of the general principles of the disclosure. Thescope of the disclosure should be determined with reference to theclaims.

It will be further appreciated that while certain steps and aspects ofthe various methods and apparatus described herein may be performed by ahuman being, the disclosed aspects and individual methods and apparatusare generally computerized/computer-implemented. Computerized apparatusand methods are necessary to fully implement these aspects for anynumber of reasons including, without limitation, commercial viability,practicality, and even feasibility (i.e., certain steps/processes simplycannot be performed by a human being in any viable fashion).

What is claimed is:
 1. Computerized network apparatus configured toenable dynamic location allocations for a plurality of computerizedclient devices based at least on wireless performance, the plurality ofclient devices each having a respective application computer programoperative to receive the respective dynamic location allocation, thecomputerized network apparatus comprising: server apparatus comprising:processor apparatus; network interface apparatus in data communicationwith the processor apparatus; and storage apparatus in datacommunication with the processor apparatus, the storage apparatuscomprising at least one computer program having a plurality ofinstructions, the plurality of instructions configured to, when executedon the processing apparatus: receive first data relating to wirelessperformance of a plurality of locations; receive second data relating towireless performance associated with at least one of the plurality ofcomputerized client devices; process the first and second data todetermine one or more of the plurality of locations which have a levelof wireless performance greater than the wireless performance associatedwith the at least one of the plurality of computerized client devices;and cause transmission of third data to the at least one of theplurality of computerized client devices via its respective applicationcomputer program, the third data configured to notify the at least oneof the plurality of computerized client devices of the one or more ofthe plurality of locations; wherein the causation of transmission of thethird data comprises causation of one or more wireless access pointapparatus to broadcast a data structure to the at least one of theplurality of computerized client devices, the data structure configuredto enable extraction of fourth data therefrom without establishment ofan attachment by the at least one of the plurality of computerizedclient devices, the fourth data comprising API (application programminginterface) data which the at least one of the plurality of clientapplication computer programs may utilize to obtain the third data. 2.The computerized network apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing ofthe first and second data to determine the one or more of the pluralityof locations comprises: utilization of a computer spatial model, thecomputer spatial model configured to indicate variations in RF signalperformance of the plurality of locations as a function of at least twodimensions; based at least on the utilization of the computer spatialmodel and a target spatial distribution of bandwidth demand associatedwith the plurality of locations, identification of the one or more ofthe plurality of locations with a predicted level of radio frequency(RF) signal performance greater than that of at least one respectivethen-current location of the at least one of the plurality ofcomputerized client devices.
 3. The computerized network apparatus ofclaim 2, wherein the target spatial distribution is configured tominimize adjacent channel interference (ACI) between an individual oneof the plurality of computerized client devices and other ones of theplurality of computerized client devices based at least on respectiveone or more radio frequency carriers utilized to service the individualone of the plurality of computerized client devices and other ones ofthe plurality of computerized client devices.
 4. The computerizednetwork apparatus of claim 1, wherein the receipt of the first datarelating to the wireless performance of the plurality of locationscomprises receipt of radio frequency (RF) parametric data generated fromone or more sensors, the one or more sensors comprising one or morepre-programmed virtual client devices configured to transact Wi-Fi (IEEEStd. 802.11) data with one or more Wi-Fi access point apparatus ineffect to simulate the plurality of computerized client devices. 5.Computer readable apparatus comprising a non-transitory storage medium,the non-transitory storage medium comprising at least one computerprogram having a plurality of instructions, the plurality ofinstructions configured to, when executed on a digital processingapparatus: transmit data representative of a request to a computerizednetworked server device, the request relating to wireless local areanetwork (WLAN) interface performance at one or more seating locationswithin the venue; provide location-related data to the computerizednetworked server device, the location-related data relating to a currentlocation of a computerized mobile wireless-enabled user device; receive,from the computerized networked server device, data relating to thewireless LAN (WLAN) interface performance at the one or more seatinglocations within the venue, the receipt comprising receipt of a datastructure, the data structure configured to enable extraction of thedata therefrom without establishment of an attachment by thecomputerized mobile wireless-enabled user device, the data comprisingAPI (application programming interface) data which a computerapplication program of the computerized mobile wireless-enabled userdevice may utilize to obtain the data relating to the WLAN interfaceperformance; and receive, from the computerized networked server device,data indicating availability for use of at least one of the one or moreseating locations.
 6. The computer readable apparatus of claim 5,wherein: the at least one computer program comprises a user-downloadedapplication computer program rendered in an object-oriented programminglanguage; and the transmission of the data representative of the requestcomprises an application programming interface (API) call sent via awireless interface of the computerized mobile wireless-enabled userdevice to the computerized networked server device at a predeterminednetwork address specified by the user-downloaded application computerprogram.
 7. The computer readable apparatus of claim 6, wherein theuser-downloaded application computer program further comprises logicconfigured to evaluate the received data relating to the wireless LAN(WLAN) interface performance at the one or more seating locations withinthe venue with respect to data relating to one or more capabilities ofthe wireless interface.
 8. The computer readable apparatus of claim 6,wherein the wireless interface of the computerized mobilewireless-enabled user device comprises an interface other than a WLANinterface of the computerized mobile wireless-enabled user device. 9.The computer readable apparatus of claim 5, wherein the plurality ofinstructions are further configured to, when executed on the digitalprocessing apparatus: receive a message issued from a WLAN access point(AP) within the venue, the received message configured to cause a WLANinterface of the computerized mobile wireless-enabled user device toinvoke a prescribed action, wherein the prescribed action enables thecomputerized networked server device to further evaluate the wirelessLAN (WLAN) interface performance within the venue.
 10. The computerreadable apparatus of claim 9, wherein the prescribed action comprises:sensing of one or more RF parameters using the WLAN interface of thecomputerized mobile wireless-enabled user device; and transmission ofdata relating to the sensed one or more RF parameters to the WLAN AP.11. The computer readable apparatus of claim 5, wherein the one or moreseating locations within the venue are selectively allocable by a serverprocess associated with a managed content network operator.
 12. Thecomputer readable apparatus of claim 11, wherein the selectiveallocation by a server process associated with the managed contentnetwork operator comprises selective allocation based at least on accessby the server process to a subscriber database of the managed contentnetwork operator, wherein the access provides data indicating asubscription level associated with the computerized mobilewireless-enabled user device or a user thereof, the server processconfigured to utilize the accessed data to perform the selectiveallocation.
 13. The computer readable apparatus of claim 5, wherein: thecomputer readable apparatus is part of a centralized cloud-basedcontroller apparatus of a plurality of controller apparatus forming alogical or topological a hierarchy, the hierarchy comprising two or morelevels, respective ones of the plurality of controller apparatus of thetwo or more levels having different levels or types of functionality.14. The computer readable apparatus of claim 5, wherein the plurality ofinstructions are further configured to, when executed on the digitalprocessing apparatus: based at least on a modification to aconfiguration of the venue, receive (i) data relating to updated WLANinterface performance at the one or more other seating locations withinthe venue, and (ii) data indicating updated availability for use of atleast one of the one or more other seating locations.
 15. A computerizedmethod of dynamically providing location allocation to a computerizedclient device associated with a respective user, the computerized methodcomprising: obtaining data relating to at least radio frequency (RF)signal performance associated with a location associated with thecomputerized client device of the plurality of computerized clientdevices; determining at least one other location having a predictedlevel of RF signal performance greater than the RF signal performance ofthe location associated with the computerized client device, thedetermining comprising: utilizing a computer spatial model to identifyvariations in RF signal performance of the plurality of locations as afunction of at least two dimensions; and based at least on the utilizingof the computer spatial model and a target spatial distribution ofbandwidth demand associated with the plurality of locations, identifyingthe at least one other location with the predicted level of RF signalperformance greater than the RF signal performance of the locationassociated with the computerized client device; and causing receipt atthe computerized client device of data relating to the at least oneother location.
 16. The computerized method of claim 15, wherein: theobtaining of the data relating to at least radio frequency (RF) signalperformance associated with the location associated with thecomputerized client device comprises utilizing at least a plurality ofwireless local area network (WLAN) access points disposed at respectivelocations within a premises to report, at least approximately in realtime, a plurality of data relating to at least one radio frequency(RF)-related performance parameter, individual ones of the plurality ofdata respectively associated with the respective locations, therespective locations comprising at least the location associated withthe computerized client device and the at least one other location; andthe determining of the at least one other location is based at least ona target spatial distribution of bandwidth demand within a premises. 17.The computerized method of claim 15, wherein: the obtaining of the datarelating to at least radio frequency (RF) signal performance associatedwith the location associated with the computerized client devicecomprises utilizing at least utilizing one or more RF sensors to report,in real time, data relating to RF performance data sensed by the one ormore RF sensors; and at least one of the one or more RF sensors isdisposed on a mobile apparatus, the mobile apparatus having a respectivelocation which changes as a function of time.
 18. The computerizedmethod of claim 15, further comprising applying a computer spatialmodel, the computer spatial model modeling RF signal propagationassociated with a plurality of respective locations within a premises inat least one prescribed frequency band according to one or morethree-dimensional propagation models; wherein the modeling of the RFsignal propagation associated with the plurality of respective locationswithin the premises is based at least in part on data representative ofa proposed physical configuration of at least a portion of the premises,the at least portion of the premises comprising one of a plurality ofportions categorized according to physical configurations for differenttypes of at least one of an RF interference modality or attenuationmodality.
 19. The computerized method of claim 18, further comprising:categorizing the plurality of portions of the premises according to thephysical configurations for the different types of the at least one ofan RF interference modality or attenuation modality, the categorizingcomprising categorizing one or more of the plurality of portions of thevenue as modified compared to a baseline configuration; and estimatingone or more signal propagation effects within the one or more of theplurality of portions based on data descriptive of structuralmodifications made thereto.
 20. The computerized method of claim 15,further comprising categorizing the plurality of portions of thepremises according to the physical configurations for the differenttypes of the at least one of an RF interference modality or RFattenuation modality, the categorizing comprising categorizing theplurality of portions at least with respect to at least two of: (i)fading; (ii) absorption; and (iii) interferer density.